Forgetting Me
by DeborahSloane
Summary: Sequel to 'Remembering Me', Daniel and Vala are engaged. But will it really be possible for the two to have a happy ending? Given what both of them have been through and continue to go through... Rated K.
1. Unsure

Vala stared in the mirror at her reflection. Sam had told her if she was going to get married then she had to get a wedding dress. Vala complied but did not suspect that it would be like this.

"I like this Vala, but ultimately it's your decision."

"My opinion is that I hate dresses." Vala responded tilting her head and staring at her reflection in the mirror. She sighed and twisted her engagement ring that was on her finger

"Well you don't have to wear a dress. That's just what a lot of people do. You don't have to, Vala."

Vala sighed, "Can we do this another day? I need to think about it some more."

"Sure Vala." Sam said smiling.

Twenty minutes later Vala was behind the wheel driving back to the base with Sam in the passenger seat. Out of everyone on the team, she was the one who had braved driving with Vala. Vala didn't say a word almost the whole way back.

"Are you okay, Vala?" Sam asked.

Vala replied, "Huh? Yeah, of course. I suppose I'm just nervous... you know about getting married." She said.

Sam looked at Vala in concern. "You do...Love Daniel, don't you? And you want to get married? Because Vala, Daniel is one of my best friends, but if you're not going to be happy. You shouldn't marry him. It's not fair to either of you."

"Oh, no, Sam!" Vala said quickly, shaking her head. "Of course I love Daniel, and _of course _I want to marry him. It's just...New. To be with someone because I love them is wonderful, but it's new. New. But not bad." She tried to convince Sam, and she put on a big smile. "I love Daniel." That was the truth.

"Good." Sam smiled. "I'm sure you'll be more excited the closer it gets."

"Yeah..." Vala agreed halfheartedly. "Of course."

They arrived on base and Vala showed her ID to the guard and then parked and jumped out of the car. "Thanks for coming with me, Sam. Perhaps we'll go again sometime." She suggested, handing Sam her keys.

"Whenever you're ready just give me a call." Sam said, accepting the keys and smiling at her friend.

~*~*~*~*~*~

"Hey did you have a good time shopping?" Daniel asked as Vala entered the room. He was pretty sure the answer would be yes. She had never gone shopping and NOT had a good time.

"Oh being with Sam was wonderful...The shopping, though? Not so good." Vala said honestly, collapsing in a chair in his office.

Daniel looked surprised, "Really? Huh, I'm sorry." He said, he couldn't believe that for once she hadn't actually _liked_ shopping.

"All of those dresses look pretty _until_ you put them on." Vala pouted, tired from a long day of shopping.

"Well, you definitely don't have to wear a dress, Vala. Wear whatever you want. It's _your_ wedding."

"But it's yours too, my dear, I want to look pretty for you --Even though really, I'm always pretty-- and besides, I like your earth traditions, even if I look like a big marshmallow.

"I don't care what you wear, Vala, you're beautiful no matter what. I think you could even pull off the marshmallow look." He teased.

"I'm sure I could. The question is if I want to." She said kicking her feet up on his desk. I'm going to go back with Sam sometime soon." She replied, inspecting her fingernails. They needed painted again.

Daniel continued staring at his open book. He couldn't read a word when she was in the room. "Want to grab some dinner?" He questioned shutting the book and looking up at her.

"I'm so proud of you for not having to be forced to stop and eat, darling. We're making progress!" Vala teased, jumping to her feet.

"Thank you, I appreciate that." His voice was sarcastic, but he looked amused.

Vala just smiled and took his hand,

Later that night Vala sat in her room. She pulled her pajamas on and pulled her eye mask onto her face. She had so many thoughts swirling around in her head. She loved Daniel. She really, truely did. But she had no idea how she could marry someone so... so... so... wonderful! She had been a thief for so long. Someone so... she.... how could she get married in less than three months with all thse thoughts swirling around in her head?

Her mind changed constantly, she loved him, but she could never marry him. She didn't deserve him. But then, on the other hand, she couldn't _not _marry him either, he was the sweetest, kindest man she had ever known, and hurting him would kill her.

But who was to say she wouldn't hurt him anyway? No, she had already agreed to marrying him. She was engaged. He even gave her a fancy ring. Not that she cared about treasure anymore, though she had played it up pretty well. But then clarified she was teasing him. Now she wished she could play it all over. How had she so readily said yes? Sitting up in the dark room, Vala yanked her eye mask off her head and jumped out of bed. Many times she seemed to have nightmares of something going wrong. She hurt him... she hadn't been able to be the wife she needed to be. Was any of this really happening? Was she really engaged? No, it was a dream... wasn't it? Vala squeezed her hands shut and felt her ring on her left hand. It should have been conformation enough that it was all real, but she didn't want to assume anything. Nighttime was when she worried most.

She needed to block out these thoughts. She needed to be with _her_ Daniel. It was the only time she ever really felt safe. The doubts only started when she was away from him. 

She put on a jacket so she wouldn't be walking around the base in her pajamas. 

She arrived at his office and knocked on the door slowly. She wasn't sure why she did, normally she would have just sauntered in, but today she didn't feel secure enough.

"Just a moment. I'll be right there." Was the answer. A moment later the door opened to reveal Daniel, still working, like she expected.

"Hey, everything okay?" He asked opening the door wider to let her inside.

"Yeah, hey I just wanted to know... well..." She said, pacing. She wasn't nervous often but now she seemed to take his habit of pacing. She stopped suddenly. "Are we really getting married?" She questioned facing him straight on.

The already concerned look on his face turned deeper so. "Vala...Of course we are! I mean..If you still..." He broke off, unsure of why this had suddenly come on. "You do...._still want to_, right?" He asked, suddenly filled with fear, but he tried to hide it.

"No! I mean, yes! I mean.... of course I do! I just.... I just wanted to... I wanted to.... You know, make sure that it wasn't all a dream. I mean, you can never be too sure, right?" She laughed nervously, playing with the ring on her finger. It was a habit she had become accustomed to and it was hard for her to stop.

"Vala, don't take this the wrong way, but Im not sure I've ever met someone who had to ask if they were engaged." He said slowly, reaching for her hands, concerned for her.

"Well now, you've never known anyone like me, have you darling?" She put on a grin, trying to laugh the whole thing off.

"Vala..." He'd learned to see right through her cheerful acts.

"What, Darling? I'm fine, really. I just needed to be sure before I went to bed. That's all, really." She said, smiling.

"Are you okay?" He questioned.

"Yes. I'm fine. Just more tired than I realized. I probably just need a good nights sleep so I'm not confused and or demented. Let's not hope both." She said.

"Are you sure I can't help you somehow?" He asked, he was worried about her.

"Honestly, Daniel, I'm alright. It just all seems too good to be true."

"If you're sure..."

"I am sure. In a short three months I'll be married to the only man I have really truly fallen in love with." She gave Daniel a kiss and said softly, "Even if I couldn't ever deserve him." Fear was still burning inside her. She covered it up well, but she couldn't bury it. Why was this happening? Why was she scared? She'd been happy at this home she'd found and now she felt nothing but fear in the arms of the man who brought her the most comfort, the most happiness. How could she be comforted and fearful at the same time?

"I think what you really mean is I don't deserve you." He commented drawing her close.

"Of course," She smiled, sarcasm in her voice. "Silly me, what was I thinking?" She became serious again, "Don't be ridiculous Daniel, I've never done anything to deserve you."

"You've done _everything_ to deserve someone much better then me."

"No." She said pulling away slightly. "I've hurt so many people, Daniel..." Her voice trailed off.

"And you've been hurt by so many people...And we have _all_ hurt a lot of people Vala. It isn't just you. You are someone who should be proud of who they are, because you did something not many people can do...You _changed._"

"Daniel," She said softly. She didn't want to have this discussion right now. "Lets talk about this another time."

Daniel nodded, "If that's what you want. " He sat down on a small sofa Vala had insisted on getting for his office long ago. She'd argued that if she was going to have to sit in there and wait on him while he worked all the time she should at least be comfortable doing it. "But I don't want you to leave, Vala, would you sit with me for a bit?" He asked, motioning to the empty spot next to him. He didn't want her to leave until she was no longer saying negative things about herself.

She sunk into the chair and curled up next to him. "My head is on overload. Between the half dozen mission reports I need to turn in, I'm  
also trying to juggle wedding plans. Its quite chaotic you know."

"I'll do the reports." He offered, with a gentle smile as he put an arm around his fiance and held her close. "If it'll make you less stressed. Just don't...You know...Tell anyone."

She laughed aloud. "I could have used help like this months ago." She said, grinning up at him.

"Yeah..." He said, with a smile. "Just don't get used to the special treatment. You won't always be my fiancé."

"No, darling, then I'll be your wife, and I'll be entitled to more special treatment then ever." She teased, already feeling more at ease, just having him hold her.

"While that's true....."

"You don't have a comeback do you, darling?" Vala grinned at him.

"Unfortunately, no. But really, this is a one time thing." He said, though he knew he wouldn't ever be able to say no if she asked him again.

"Of course it is darling" She said innocently.

"Of course it is, darling" She said innocently.

"You really need to stop manipulating me with this--"

"Control I have over you? It's not my fault you adore me, darling, although, perhaps if I was less wonderful it would help." She teased, almost back to normal as she winked at him.

"I doubt it." He joked, taking her hand in his as they sat together.


	2. Changed Events

**A/N: Hey readers! Hope you'll enjoy this story like you did our other one. Again, I am writing this WITH WillowEchoRiver. =) Enjoy!**

**Dislaimer: We dont own stargate.**

"Samantha," Vala said as she skipped into Sam's lab. "Do you want to go shopping this afternoon?" She questioned, picking up a small object on Sam's desk and fiddling with it.

Sam looked surprised. "Sure, if you want too. I just sort of thought you'd be done with that for a while." She asked, looking a little amused.

"Well, what's that earth phrase? If you fall of the camel—"

"It's the horse, actually."

"Right. Got it. Well, then lets get back on the horse!" She said clasping her hands together and letting the object she had been holding fall back onto the desk.

"Alright, then do you want to go out for dinner afterward?" Sam asked finishing what she was doing and grabbing her jacket that was hanging up.

"Sure Sam, I just want to finish this dress shopping so I can check it off my extensively long list of things to do."

"I don't know, Vala, maybe you should relax about it. This is supposed to be fun and exciting. Not a form of torture." Sam said,

"The exciting part is marrying Daniel, Sam. This planning and waiting, the less fun part."

"Then why don't you just get married tomorrow?" Sam questioned grabbing her keys and following Vala out the door.

"Excellent plan, Samantha. However there is one flaw. Daniel." She said turning and smiling, "He doesn't do things on a whim like I like to do. Otherwise I would go, right now—off world even!— and get married!" She said grinning.

Sam just laughed, "Oh yes, I should have remembered that about Daniel. But I have no doubt that _you_ would do that impulsively."

Vala just laughed, "But I would do anything for Daniel, really, if he wants to wait and stick to the date planned. Then I won't argue...I argue with him about enough silly things."

Sam smiled and nodded in agreement, "I think we have all recognized that." She said with a smile. As they arrived at the car Sam's cell phone started ringing. "Just a second Vala." she said answering it. "Hello?... Oh, hi Jack... Well I'm busy... I can see, but no promises... Alright... Okay hold on one second." Sam pulled the phone away from her ear and asked Vala "Do you and Daniel want to go to dinner with Jack and I or would you rather just make it a girls' night out?" She questioned.

"Oh, that sounds fun. I can call Daniel. I'm sure I can pull him away from his work, well, my work actually..." Vala said trailing off.

"I see... You got him to do your work?"

"Of course, it's the power of love, I suppose. Or just because of my power of being wonderful." She winked.

"Right... Anyway, hold on again." She put the phone back to her ear and said, "Sure, we're in but right now we're busy. We'll call you when we're gone... Mhmmmm.....you too....bye." Sam hung up the phone and settled into the seat in her car.

They drove to the store with small chit-chat but as soon as they arrived Vala was in a flurry of browsing through and trying on dress after dress. She was about to give up and tell Sam she was getting hungry when she saw. The perfect dress. She fluttered over to it and practically begged to try it on.

Sam laughed, "Go on, then, Vala. Try it!" Sam encouraged her, glad Vala had found something she liked.

Vala grabbed the dress off the rack and skipped into the dressing room. She emerged a few minutes later. "Oh, Sam! It's perfect!"

"And you're sure this is what you want?" Sam questioned.

"Of course I am. I've seen so many things that just aren't me but this one is definitely me." She said, almost glowing with happiness.

Thirty minutes later Vala sat next to Sam in the car with her most perfect dress in the back seat. "Alright, I'm going to call Daniel. You know what I convinced him to buy me? A cell phone. After quite a bit of convincing he finally agreed." She said smiling pulling out her cell phone to call him.

"Hello darling!" Vala spoke into the phone cheerfully, "Quite well, thank you! I've found the perfect one! But Sam tells me I'm not supposed to show it to you until the wedding, dearest! Would you like to have dinner with Sam and Jack and I? Excellent! Where are we eating Sam?" Vala asked her.

Sam replied that she didn't know the name of the restaurant but knew where it was and tried to describe it to her. When they arrived Jack was already there with a table ready for them. The three sat down and Vala waiting impatiently for Daniel.

Vala sighed, "He said he was on his way." She said, impatiently.

After an hour passed, they were all getting a little nervous and she decided to call him. When he didn't answer, she was worried. "He always answers my calls, Samantha." She said, staring down at her phone.

"Maybe we should call the base and see if he's left yet." Sam said as Jack grabbed his own phone and dialed the number. When they found out he had left they got worried and replayed the info about him not getting there and immediately they started searching.

Vala was a mess. This wasn't supposed to happen! She was going to marry him! She'd just bought her dress! And now he'd disappeared. She was pretty near hysterical at this point.

"Vala, calm down. Stuff like this happens all the time and things turn out just fine!" She declared.

"You wouldn't be calm if Jack--Okay, you probably would, because your a calm person...But...But I'm not! My fiancé just got kidnapped! How am I supposed to be calm?"

"I'm going to take Vala back to base, Jack, do you want to join the search party?" Sam said, turning to Jack.

"For my best friend? Of course!" Jack said following them out.

Vala was taking deep breaths. "What are we going to do?" She questioned, buckling quickly.

"What _we're_ going to do." Sam said, looking at Vala. "_We're_ going to go back to the base, stick in a movie, and try to distract you, okay?"

"Sam, I couldn't possibly watch a movie at a time like this!"

"Yes, you can. We'll throw in a chick flick and have a girls night. Then we'll hang up you dress and hide it, okay?"

"What's the point of hiding it? Daniels..."

"_Going to be found_."

Vala slumped down and folded her arms.

That night Vala sat absorbed in Miss Congeniality trying not to think of Daniel. They had heard no word... yet.

When the movie ended, Vala stared at the blank television. She felt sick with fear for Daniel. "They aren't going to find him." She said, and her breath caught in her throat. "It's been four hours since he disappeared Sam..."

"They'll find him" She promised. "We haven't watched Miss Congeniality 2 yet."

"I really appreciate it, Sam, but I'd much rather join the searching party."

As Sam was about to answer the phone rang which made Vala jump then reach for it, beating Sam there.

"This is Vala, have you found him?" She said into the phone, quickly.

"Vala, can I talk to Sam, please?" Came Jack's voice from the other end. He seemed to think it was a bad idea to relay his information directly to Vala. He might be a little too blunt about it.

"No, tell me first, he's my fiancé!" Vala insisted, but Jack didn't change his mind.

"I need to talk to Sam, the sooner you give her the phone, and the sooner you'll know."

Stubbornly she handed over the phone.

"Hello?" Sam answered.

"We have a lead but it doesn't look good. Its definitely not someone from earth."

"Do you know who it is?" Sam asked, her voice low so Vala wouldn't hear it all so easily.

Vala was pacing back and forth, while she waited for some information from Sam.

"Not exactly, but they came by ship. Our best bet is someone's holding a grudge."

"Are you tracking the ship?" Sam asked.

"Yeah, I'll call you when we've got more figured out." Jack told her,

"Thanks. Talk to you soon, I hope. Love you." Sam hung up the phone and with a sigh turned to look at Vala. "Well, the news is good, if you ask me. They're tracking the person who took them."

"So he _was_ kidnapped, then." Vala sighed and sunk into a chair, she held her legs close to her chest. "Sam, if he dies I'll d--"

"He's _not_ going to die, Vala."

"But who could it be?'' She questioned setting her chin on her knees.

"We don't know yet Vala. They are getting the Odyssey ready right now to go after him."

"Can I go?" Vala pleaded.

"I don't think that's a good idea, Vala, besides, then they'd just have to wait on you."

"But, I can get ready quickly!" She argued.

Sam put her hands up, "Fine but you had better hurry!"

Vala scurried about to get ready quickly so she could help find her fiancé. She hoped it would be a success. She couldn't help but be filled with fear as she thought of all the possible outcomes.

Twenty minutes later Vala and Sam were beamed aboard the Odyssey.

**A/N:Hey! We'd love it if you could REVIEW!!! Thanks, guys! =)**


	3. Trouble

**A/N**: **Sorry for the HUGE delay in getting this chapter up, but alas, here we are! **

**Disclaimer: We do not own Stargate and don't claim it. Hence why this is called a 'dis'claimer. =)**

"Can we beam onto the ship?" Vala questioned. she was beyond bored. They had spent a week on the ship and was bored senseless.

"We could, but we don't know how safe it is." One of the people who had joined the rescue team stated.

"Oh I'm So BORED!!!!" Vala complained. "We have to get him, instead of just sitting around here! He could die while we stare out the window!"

"She makes a good point." Sam acknowledged.

"_Thank you_, Samantha! Now, I don't care what all of you say, I am beaming aboard and finding my fiancé."

"We have to first try and make contact." The Major said.

"If we do they'll run away!" Vala practically screamed.

"Vala, you can't just beam aboard." Sam tried to calm her friend down a little. Vala had been worried about Daniel all week, and she went in and out of stages of panic.

"Yes, I can, and I plan to! I want my Daniel back!"

After another twenty for hours Vala, long with Sam and Jack were ready to beam aboard.

"It's about time!" Vala said, just as a bright flash filled the control room.

They were beamed aboard the enemy ship.

The hallway they were beamed into was deserted. "Look for life signs, Sam." She said looking around nervously.

Sam nodded and did as Vala asked, then she looked at Vala again and said, "Follow me." She led the way down the deserted hallway, to an open door where she was two guards standing at the other side.

They were both about to shoot at the guards to go through when they heard a voice coming from the room. A voice Vala recognized right away.

"It couldn't be..." She whispered.

"Vala?" Sam questioned, hesitant to shoot.

Vala looked lost in thought but looked up at Sam when she heard her name. It took her a moment to respond, "That voice... he... It couldn't be..."

"Who is it, Vala?" Sam whispered urgently.

"His name...But it couldn't be him...His name is Cargiff, his a very, very unpleasant..And I think he might have something against me."

"Well that's a shocker." Jack said from behind her.

Vala shot a glare at him and then turned back to the door. "This is going to be harder than I expected." She stated. She glanced at Sam, "Can you guys go try to find Daniel? I can distract Cargiff?" She asked, thinking it would be the best way to go about this.

"Are you sure that's wise, Vala?" Sam asked concerned.

"Am I sure anything I do is wise, Samantha? But I insist, you guys better hurry. I don't think Cargiff will hurt me."

Sam exchanged looks with Jack and silently agreed, following Sam and using there tracking signal to go in the direction they assumed he would be.

Vala watched them leave, zatted the two guards at the door and ventured into the room, holding the zat in her hands behind her back.

What was disturbing was that Cargiff didn't look at all surprised to see her. He just smirked and said, "Well, Vala, you've finally come."

"What have you done with my fiancé, Cargiff?"

"Since when do you love anyone but yourself?" He spat. "All you ever care about is your own gain. What sort of trick is it this time?" He questioned, impatiently.

"Oh, bitterness doesn't suit you at all." She said, with her trademark grin. But there was a look of extreme dislike behind her eyes.

"It's only the truth." He growled, "It's too bad when I kill your fiancé you won't really care. Unless he left something behind for you, but that's hardly a bad thing." He shrugged, "I wish you cared about him, I wish you gave him your heart, so I could kill him and rip it out of you."

Vala was a little surprised at how much Cargiff hated her. Okay, wasn't surprised. But she'd forgotten how awful he was. She figured it was a bad time to defend her love for Daniel.

"Well," She said, sliding down and sitting into a seat across from Cargiff, playing it cool. "He's not the most... wealthy person I've run across, but it's better than nothing. He fell head over heels in love with me the first--well, maybe the second time he saw me. It's been too easy." She said, glancing over at him.

"Ah, I knew you couldn't actually love. Someone like you must be incapable of loving, because really all you do is steal and run. Flee for you life. It's not the best idea, there are people out there looking for revenge." He said, with a tinge of contempt in his voice. 

"Oh, really? Do you happen to know anyone looking for revenge?" She challenged, but then winked. "The reason I'm here is because... Well, to be honest, I thought perhaps we could strike up a deal. Make an alliance even."

"How could I trust you?" He questioned.

"Well, you know." She said and stood and took a step near him. "I always have been more than a little... attracted to you." Oh, she was going to throw up. The thought made her stomach uneasy.

"Oh, have you now?" Cargiff seemed to be thinking.

"We'd make a lovely team." She suggested.

"So, what deal are you suggesting?" Cargiff asked, he seemed less suspicious then he had been a moment ago.

Vala was going to be sick. "Here's the deal Cargiff..." She said, as she smiled and stepped closer. Suddenly she pulled the zat from behind her and held it to Cargiff's chest. "The deal is, that I'm in love with Daniel, believe it or not. And if you don't let him go, I'll have no problem shooting you...Do you know how these guns work? The first shot will knock you out, the second will kill you...The third will make you disintegrate. So which sounds better to you? Let Daniel go and never bother us again...Or... disintegrate?"

Cargiff gulped, "I knew I should never trust you. I don't know what you're trying to gain by pretending to be in love, but let me warn you that even if I let you go there are others our there who will come for you, ValaMalDoran!"

"Oh whatever," She rolled her eyes and fired the zat. Not to kill him, just to knock him out. She tied him up so he wouldn't cause any trouble, then she went to find the others. She tried to keep her mind off of Cargiff's words. No doubt there were people who hated her, but would they really come looking like Cargiff had? She decided they'd have to take him back to the SGC, so he wouldn't cause more trouble. But that didn't stop her from worrying about others who might come after her and her fiancé. Maybe a happily ever after really wasn't going to happen for her. She had always known it was too good to be true.

When she rounded the corner and saw Sam and Daniel cautiously walking down the hall, with Jack not far behind, she practically dropped her zat and flung herself into his arms. However, she kept a hold on her emotions (and on the zat) and managed a fierce hug.

"Oh, darling! Dearest, sweetest, Daniel! I was so worried about you! I'd have come for you right away but they wouldn't let me! I have this theory that they don't love you as much as I do...They must not care as much as me...At least, I hope the ladies don't! Because they have me to face! But darling, I"m so glad your okay!" Vala only stopped when she ran out of breath.

"Whoa, sweetheart! I'm fine!" He said rubbing his hands up and down her back soothingly, "But right now we have to go, okay?"

Vala took a deep breath, but smiled at him. "Alright." She said, cheerfully. She then glanced at Jack, "You may want to go get Cargiff, he's tied up in the other room. I'm _amazing_. Aren't I, dearest?" She asked Daniel, taking his hand as they hurried on.

"Amazing." He replied as they followd Jack to get Cargiff.

Cargiff was waking up by this time, but was still trapped. "You...Think she loves you!" He glared at Daniel, "She's a lying thief, and she's not capable of loving anyone, let alone you."

Vala zatted him, knocking him out once more.

Daniel glanced at her and saw how uneasy and rigid she was. "You okay?"

"I'm fine, darling, I just really don't like this man." The last part wasn't a lie, at least. She squeezed Daniel's hand and smiled at him, "Now come on, let's get home! We've got a wedding to plan, haven't we, darling?"

"Of course"

"We've already lost a week. We don't have any time to loose!"

Jack just shook his head, as Vala clung to Daniel's hand and asked for his approval of question after question. "You put up with so much, Daniel, although, we've had to deal with her for the past week. You can have her back."

"He loves me, don't you, darling?"

"Of course, Vala." Daniel replied, looking amused.

"See?! There she goes asking for your approval again! You must be pretty insecure." He commented to Vala.

"I'm not insecure, I'm gorgeous! Aren't I--Nevermind."

Daniel couldn't help the laugh that escaped him. "It's okay Vala,"

Vala pretended to pout. But she was far too happy to be really upset when she finally had Daniel back. That week had seemed like an eternity. She squeezed his hand. "No matter what Cargiff says, I love you, darling."

"I love you too." They were then beamed aboard the Odyssey.

Everyone on board was eager to make sure everyone was alright, especially Daniel. Multiple times they tried to get Vala to let go of him so they could make sure he wasn't seriously hurt, but she wouldn't dream of letting him out of her sight. Not yet.

"Come on Vala we have to go to the infirmary. You know protocol."

"Oh, but I hate protocol Daniel!" Vala sighed, but decided she didn't have much of a choice. "Well, alright then."

She sighed dramatically, following him to the infirmary.

It was a couple hours later and Vala hadn't left Daniel's side once. "You're not getting tired of me are you, darling?" Vala asked him.

"We're getting married, I'm pretty sure I'd have to _enjoy_ being constantly around you to marry you, don't you think?" He teased.

"Even in some marriages, couples don't spend a lot of time together. I've read about it!" Vala declared allowing the nurse who greeted them to take her blood pressure.

"I bet those couples don't work together, do they?"

"Well, even if they did then they probably don't save each others' lives," She pointed out. However, no matter how much happiness and cheerfulness she tried to past on her face she kept hearing Cargiff's words in her mind, over and over.

_"I don't know what you're trying to gain by pretending to be in love, but let me warn you that even if I let you go there are others our there who will come for you, ValaMalDoran!"_

The words haunted her.

**A/N: Well, there sure is trouble now. I don't remember who it was, But I (DeborahSloane) personally liked the idea that they should go elope. ;) All you readers/reviewers are GREAT! **


	4. Fear

**A/N**: **Sorry this one is so short, but the other one is written so no worries. =)  
**

**Disclaimer: We do not own Stargate and don't claim it.**

Vala couldn't be more excited to be back on earth. It took another week to get home and she was beginning to miss solid ground. She never talked of anything but getting back on earth _until_ they were back on earth. She was extremely glad to be off of the Odyssey, especially off of the Odyssey with Daniel safely home.

"I am so ready to be home!" Vala shouted excitedly as they were beamed back onto earth. They were all eager to be home, back to their normal (or not-so-normal) lives. Two weeks passed and Vala had barely been talking about anything of substance.

Vala paced her room. She couldn't get the words Cargiff had said out of her head. She couldn't understand why they bugged her so much. Her life was always on the line, so why should she be so unnerved about this? Vala was drawn out of her thoughts by a loud knock on the door. "Come in." She shouted, sitting down on her bed.

"Hey, just thought I'd see what you're up to." Sam said shutting the door behind her.

"Oh, hello, Samantha." Vala said, with a distracted smile.

"Are you doing alright?" Sam asked, confused when she saw the look on Vala's face.

"Yes, I'm fine...Though, I appreciate the concern." She said, putting on a smile.

Sam wasn't fooled. "What's wrong, Vala?"

Vala shrugged and looked away.

"Vala, I don't want to make you tell me anything. But lately you've been acting strange. I mean, even before Daniel got captured by that Cargiff something wasn't right. I don't know what's going on, Vala, but maybe the best way to deal with it would be to tell me." Sam suggested.

"Well, thanks for your concern Sam, but really, I'm fine. I just... you know, nervous. We lost a month in planning, pretty much and we're scheduled to go offworld in a few hours and I don't know, I've just been kind of tired." Vala said, pasting on a smile. "But really, I'm fine."

"Do you want to stay home?" Sam offered, worried about her friend. "I'm sure the others will understand, since you don't ask to skip out very often--" 

"No, no, no! I definitely want to come!" Vala said quickly.

"Alright, I just..."

"It's okay Sam. I am perfectly fine, I just wish everyone would stop worrying about me." Vala said with a smile trying to convince her friend. Inwardly she felt the wart between her staying and leaving for Daniel's safety raging inside her.

She loved him, she really did, and she would never want to hurt him. But he could be killed if she stayed. There was bound to be more people out there, wanting to hurt her and anyone she loved. That was the price she had to pay for the life she had lived. And now that price might cost her everything. But how could she hurt Daniel?

She knew what she had to do and she didn't like it at all. After assuring Sam she was fine, Vala pulled out a piece of note paper and began scribbling a note on it. After rewriting the note more than five times, she reread her note. Satisfied, she gently folded the note, slipped it inside an envelope and sealed it. Then she wandered down the hall to Daniel's office and knocked on the door before opening it and entering without any response from the person contained within the room. However, Daniel looked up when she entered and smiled at her.

"Hey, Daniel. Can I use your computer?" She questioned, feeling the weight of the letter she had written in her hands that she had clasped behind her back.

"Sure, it's all yours." He said, indicating the computer he wasn't using. "Hey, what's that?" He asked about the envelope she held behind her back.

"Oh, it's just wedding plans. I was hiding it because it's about the fitting for my dress that you're apparently not supposed to see until the wedding." She lied well.

"Right. Got it." He smiled at her, and went back to work. Not dwelling on it, though he probably should have.

Vala put on a fake smile and sauntered over to the computer. She typed in her security code and searched for the layout of P2W-873, the planet they were scheduled to go to in an hour. Within a few minutes she had the layout of the area they would be visiting memorized. She could be in and out with no problem getting in her way except her own feelings.

"Daniel?" She asked, looking away from the computer at him for a moment.

"Mhmm?" He didn't even look up from his work.

"I love you." She felt the words get caught in her throat. But she was very good at hiding, "you know?"

"I know. I love you too." He said, casually. Not recognizing the fear in her words.

**A/N: All you readers/reviewers are GREAT! **


	5. Love Comes First

**A/N: Well, here is chapter five! This is such a lovely fan fiction, its fun to write. =) (Well, for DeborahSloane, anyway, ask WillowEchoRiver yourself! =)**

**Disclaimer:We do not own Stargate, again we say this. **

Daniel was getting ready to leave. Vala had little time before she, herself, needed to get ready. She made it to Daniel's office with only minimal stares. Thankful, she reached the room she was looking for and arranged the few items how she wanted them. She pulled her engagement ring off and held it between her fingers. She was about to set it down on the table but she just couldn't find the strength. Shoving the ring back onto her finger she left the room, closing the door as quietly as possible.

She leaned against the door, her eyes closed as she took a deep breath. Trying to convince herself this was the right thing to do.

~*~*~*~

Not long later, they were all standing in the gateroom, ready to leave. Vala looked around her, carefully taking everything in. She fought to keep herself together. She took Daniel's hand and squeezed it. Letting go, she went ahead up the ramp and was the first, followed by Sam, to walk through the gate.

On other side, Vala looked around. Yes, she knew the layout very well from studying it for more than an hour. Behind her the rest of the team stepped through the gate. She knew she needed to be thinking and on her feet if her plan was going to work out. She knew that she couldn't look at Daniel. If she did, she wouldn't be able to carry out her plan and she knew it.

"Mitchell, do you think we should split up?" Vala suggested, "See these different paths?"

"Yeah, that's probably a good idea."

"I agree." She said looking both ways down the separate paths. She knew they were going to have to split up and thought it was perfect. "Want to be 'buddies', Mitchell?" she questioned. She figured he would be the easiest to team up with to carry out her plan. She just hoped he'd agree.

"I just thought you'd wanna go with Jackson." Mitchell said, shrugging.

"No, I can't go with Daniel, I want to talk about my wedding dress and Samantha tells me he's not supposed to know about it!"

"_I _don't want to hear about it! If you want to talk about your dress, you're not comin' with me. Talk to Sam."

"But Sam has _seen_ it."

She turned, "Muscles? Come on, you know you want to hear about it! It's SO perfect, but you can't say a WORD to Daniel!" She exclaimed.

Teal'c just nodded his acquiescence, and Vala continued to force cheerfulness as she waved over her shoulder at Daniel, without looking at him, and skipped off with Teal'c, describing her wedding dress as she did so.

Daniel stood watching Vala skip away with an amused expression on his face. He had no idea of the pain he was going to feel within the next couple of hours. He couldn't see right through. Not this time. Not when she wouldn't even meet his gaze. Not that he noticed, she was a strange one. How had he ever fallen in love with her? He smiled at the thought and followed Sam and Cam down the other path.

"and over here on this side its got-- Oh no!"

"What seems to be the problem, ValaMalDoran?" Teal'c asked, slowing and stopping to wait for her.

"I must have dropped my zat back at the gate. See, it's not here!" She said, indicating the missing zat.

"Indeed. Do you wish for me to accompany you back to the Stargate?"

"Nah, that's not necessary, I can go get it, muscles!" She said, cheerfully.

Teal'c seemed ready to object, but Vala stopped him. "I've got it! It'll take five minutes!" She said, forcing a smile, and she turned and jogged back through the trees towards the gate. She glanced over her shoulder, to be certain Teal'c had not followed her. She hated herself for what she was doing, but she couldn't think about it. Not now. Or she might change her mind.

She'd convinced herself it was the right thing. Daniel would be in danger if she stayed. In her opinion, it was far better for him to live a little while with a broken heart then for him to be killed.

She worked quickly so she wouldn't be missed before she got the chance to make her escape. She grabbed her zat gun from off the ground where she'd purposely left it, and hurried to dial the DHD. She glanced over her shoulder once more as the gate dialed, "Goodbye, dearest, Daniel. Goodbye SG1."

She closed her eyes as she took a step towards the gate, and said, "Goodbye, my perfect life." And she stepped through the gate.

-----------

"What do you mean she's gone?" Daniel asked worriedly, speaking into his radio, while using his other hand to run it through his hair. What had gone wrong? It was just a normal mission.

"She returned to the gate to retrieve her lost item. When she was gone longer than expected I returned to the Stargate myself to find no sign of ValaMalDoran." Teal'c responded.

"Hold on, Teal'c. We're headed your way." Mitchell said into his own radio.

When they all met up, Daniel looked frustrated and worried. He kept trying to tell himself she had only gotten lost, that no one had kidnapped her or killed her or hurt her. He didn't have the slightest suspicion of what had really happened.

For hours they searched, but as the planet grew dark, Mitchell said, "We need to go back to the base." He decided.

"We can't go back!" Daniel answered, frustrated.

"We'll get help finding her, Jackson. In the long run, if we do that we have a better chance of getting back your girl. Wherever she is. She's probably lost, I'm sure no one took her."

"I am not so certain it is either of those scenarios, CameronMitchell." Teal'c said, after a thoughtful pause.

"What?" Daniel asked, whipping his head around to stare at Teal'c.

"ValaMalDoran did not appear to be herself." Teal'c stated simply.

"Meaning...? What, she just... left?" Cam questioned.

"She did not wish for me to join her to search for her weapon." Teal'c said, slowly.

Daniel glared at the lot of them, but didn't answer as they dialed the gate.

They returned back and debriefed. General Landry listened and told them all to get a couple hours of rest before they joined the search party. The team dispersed and Daniel walked down the hallway t his office. He was exhausted but needed to grab a few things. He slid his key card into the lock and opened the door, staring at the floor. His heart dropped into his stomach when he looked up at his desk. Lying neatly across it was a long, fancy, white dress. Something that looked exactly like what Vala would wear.

And in that moment, as he walked over to the desk, he knew what had happened. He felt sick as he realized what had been right in front of him. Why hadn't he noticed her odd behavior?

He ran his hand over the silk of the white dress for a moment, shutting his eyes tightly to hold back tears that were forming. He realized there was a white envelope, that said _'Daniel'_ on the front. He knew this must be the envelope she had been holding early. His hand shook as he reached for the envelope, and gently tore it open. He read and reread the words.

_Dear Daniel,_

Let me start by explaining myself. I know you can never forgive me for what I did. At this time I know how you must feel and I'm dreadfully sorry. I can guarantee you that I am feeling the same way. I knew I had to leave after our encounter with Cargiff. How can I endanger your life by staying with you? I would never be able to live with myself if I let anything happen to you. I was worried sick when I sat on the Odyssey for a week, unable to reach you. I can tell you now that there is no need to look for me. I also promise you that I will not return to my awful old ways and I will not steal, swindle, or take from any poor family or person. That would just cause you more pain if you thought I was out here hurting others in the universe. I assure you I am not. I have never loved anyone in my life the way I loved you, Daniel. I don't think I knew how _to love anyone before I met you. And I will never, ever love anyone the way I love you, ever again. _

_  
Never would I do anything to hurt you on purpose, but there are people who hate me, Daniel. They don't care if I've changed, they don't care if I want to make it up to them. They want to hurt me and get to me in whatever way possible, including using you. I cannot live life if you are hurt. _

_  
You will move on, darling, I am sure you will. You must. I don't think the universe is so small as to allow us another meeting, though we have been thrown into each others paths so many times before. I can only hope you will forgive me for my actions. They are my actions and I take full responsibility for them._

I have left my wedding dress safe in your hands. I do not know if it i returnable, but if it is you can take it back or keep it for yourself-- whichever you wish. And I know that ring you gave me was valuable and I know that it cost a lot just to give to someone who is now gone but I believe you will forgive me for keeping it. I needed something to remind me that you weren't a dream. That there was someone out there that really cared for me. You always did care and that's why I loved you. 

_  
I'm counting on your kindness not to hate me for this. If I couldn't feel there was still someone out there who loved me, I don't know what I would have..._

_But neither of us expected me to make it through till the end. We always knew I could never stay in one place. I didn't want to run. Something you said to me once about how it's time to stop running... that's all I can really think about right now. I'm so sorry that I'm running. But I'm not running away from my actions, I assure you. I am protecting you. So I guess this is proof that no matter how much a person changes they'll always still really be the same._

__

It breaks my heart to break yours.

Don't look for me, Daniel, don't make it hurt worse then it must.

_Loving you, always, yours,  
Vala_

Daniel folded the letter slowly, and placed it back onto the white dress. He grabbed the phone and called Sam, weakly he said into the phone, "She's gone, Sam. Tell the search party not to bother...--No. Please. I don't want your sympathy. Right now I just need to be alone. Thanks, Sam."

Daniel knew he couldn't go after her. She was gone. As he gazed upon her "perfect'' wedding dress, he cried. He tried to tell himself to hold it together at first, but after a moment, he had realized he shouldn't be _expected_ to hold it together. His fiancé was gone. There was no shame in crying about it.

After a reasonable amount of tears had been shed he heard a knock on his door. He tried to pull himself together before he answered, and called out "Who is it?" In as strong a voice as he could manage. The door was locked. He just wanted to be alone, but he didn't want to be rude either. So he waited for an answer.

"Its Jack."

Daniel wondered who had called him. "Just a second!" He called, as he wiped at his eyes with the sleeve of his shirt. Wishing his eyes hadn't become red. He knew there was no reason to feel bad about crying but he did. Even as he opened the door to his best friend, the only thing really going through his mind was..._She's gone._

"Hey I already heard. How are you doing?" Jack studied his best friend.

Daniel shrugged, leaning against his desk and staring only at the floor. "As good as I can be expected to be."

Jack stared past him to the white material that lay neatly on his desk, "She's really gone, huh?''

Jack's bluntness was strangely comforting. Daniel cleared his throat, so he could speak more strongly. Hoping he didn't still sound like he was crying. He would never _stop_ crying unless he stopped now. "Yeah. She is." He could hardly believe it.

"Man, Daniel. I'm so sorry." Jack replied giving his friend a hug. "That was from Carter. She demanded I give you a hug for her"

"Thanks Jack. She's gone for good. This time it's no elaborate plan, no plot. No... nothing. She's just gone. Oh, I don't even want to believe it."

"But she changed, Daniel. You have to admit that she changed while she was here." Jacks soothed.

"I didn't even see this coming! I should have!- but I didn't!"

"No one did." Jack said, hoping to comfort his friend.

"But _I _should have!"

"Come on Daniel, you can't beat yourself up about this."

"How can I not beat myself about this? My fiancé left because she thought I was going to _die_ if she stayed!" He said, raising his voice slightly, though fighting and failing to remain calm.

"Daniel..." Jack said slowly. "Want to share the whole story?" He asked his friend.

"I got kidnapped a couple of weeks ago, by one of her old enemies...I was fine, but..." He sighed, and handed Jack the note.

Jack stood in silence a few minutes as he scanned the note, "Oh no, she's still in love with you."

Daniel stared at Jack. "That's, 'oh no' _why_?"

"Because she's out there walking around in depression. She's not going to know left from right or up from down. And she's alone. I don't doubt she can take care of her self, bujt can she take care of herself hating herself for her actions and surviving with a broken heart?"

Daniel shut his eyes tightly at the mental image that had just been set before him. "Thank you for that, Jack. Because that's _really_ what I needed to hear right now!"

"Come on Daniel, she's gone. She can take care of herself. Sure, she'll be a little down but she'll get over it. She always does, doesn't she?"

"Yeah." He tried to convince himself, but it wasn't working. "Yeah. I guess she will...I don't think I will though."

----

Meanwhile, Vala could see her breath as she looked around the dark, cold cell. Temperatures were dropping and she knew if she sat in the cell cold and wet for the whole night she would not be in very good condition for escaping the next morning. Indeed, as Teal'c might say, this was bad.

**A/N: Dun Dun Dun........ Cliffhanger for ya'll. =)**


	6. Taken For Granted

**A/N: And here is the next chapter. Been a little bit of a crazy weekend but here it is!**

**Disclaimer: Don't own it...**

_Vala ducked down behind the DHD. She heard shooting and she knew that there must be a war going on. Most likely a civil war, since there didn't seem to be any ships. She knew she needed to get out. She jumped up and started dialing, grabbing her zat and shooting as many people who tried to approach her. As more shots were aimed at her, she forgot about the DHD and ran for cover. As she ran for she felt a shot. Lucky for her, it was just a stun. Being used to stuns by now, she tried to shake it off and ran as fast as she could. She hid in the trees there were about a fourth of a mile from the gate. She knew she needed to get off the planet but didn't see how with the gate being heavily guarded._

Vala leaned all her weight against a large tree and heaved a huge sigh. She was pretty sure she had lost her attackers. She couldn't move, she couldn't even think. She glanced around. Her body, still suffering the effects of the stun weapon she had had an encounter with, didn't seem to want to move. She noticed a lake of water and thought that it would do her good to get a little cold water running on her face. She wasn't sure how, but she managed to get her body there. She bent down to splash some water on her face. But what she did not anticipate was the attacker who came up behind her, shot her with his stun five times. Here body went completely unresponsive and she fell face first into the water.

This was how she had arrived in the cold cell she was now shivering in. When she had decided to move on to protect Daniel, she hadn't envisioned being locked up. Now she was locked in a cold room, with only her thoughts of misery to keep her company. The only thing she could think of to comfort herself was, "Daniel is safe." and she kept telling herself that. Most likely he had already found her dress and the letter she left him and read it. She knew he wouldn't be coming, he respected what she wanted and she knew no one was coming for her. She was alone. But she was Vala Mal Doran and she would find a way out before hypothermia kicked in.

She couldn't stand remembering that she'd broken his heart. She had to tell herself he was safe over and over again, and block out the pain she was sure he felt. She couldn't find it in her heart to hope he moved on, even though she had written that he should, but she did hope for the best for him. She wanted him to be happy. But more then anything she wanted to be with him. But it was dangerous.

She couldn't risk his life, she just couldn't. Going to Stargate Command had been good, in theory. But her past haunted her and she knew that she would never be able to have a semi-normal life. She had never actually expected one. It had felt like a dream when she was with Daniel and she couldn't bring herself to wake up. Well, she was awake now only she wished she wasn't.

She closed her eyes for a moment, and imagined his face smiling at her. Then she opened her eyes, jumped to her feet, with a new determination and struggled with the lock on the door. She needed something to help her with the lock. It wasn't a hard lock but all her nails were broken from her fight with the people she had battled with and any bobby pins she had had were now gone. She needed something to use... She fiddled with her engagement ring as she thought over her situation, how was she always so prepared, and yet, now she didn't have anything to pick the lock!

She continued to mess with her ring, racking her mind. She stopped short, glanced down at her hand and smiled, "Well Daniel, you've helped me after all." She said to herself, pulling the ring off her finger. "You had better not break." She instructed the ring before inserting it in the lock.

Satisfied, she heard a light _click_. It took a very, very good thief to pick a lock with only an engagement ring, and she placed it happily back on her finger. She pushed the door open and glanced around. She was dripping wet and freezing and wasn't sure which was she should go, all she knew was that she needed to get out in whatever way possible as fast as she could. Surely it was dark out by now and she could sneak to the gate and dial it without too much trouble. When she arrived on another planet she could gate to yet another planet and get some food there.

She made her way down the hallway silently, and seemed to be near the exit when someone grabbed her from behind. Thankfully it was only one guard and she grabbed his arm and twisted it backwards, kicking him in the stomach and stealing his gun, she pointed it at him and said, "Shh." Holding a finger to her lips, to instruct him to silence his whimpering.

When the guard finally did she whispered, "Which was is out?"

"Why would I tell you that?" He commanded in a loud tone.

Vala looked around nervously and then back at the man, pressing the gun against him. "Don't talk too loudly and I think we both know the answer to that question."

"You won't shoot me." He tried to sound brave.

She cocked the gun, "Really?"

"Fine! Fine! It's that way!" He instructed, pointing in the direction to her right.

"Great, thanks. You just saved yourself your life." She said knocking him on the head, unconscious but not a deathblow. She fled down the corridors and found her own way out. However, there were several men guarding the exit and she knew she had little to now chance of getting past them even with her confiscated weapon.

She crept towards them, and then threw a rock at the wall opposite her, hoping to get their attention. Sure enough, she heard one of them say, "Did you hear that? I'll check it out." Exactly what she was hoping, for one of them to come alone. When the man approached she took no time in kicking him and knocking him unconscious. When she heard more coming she grabbed the sun weapon from the man she had just knocked down and didn't hesitate to shoot at the others. However, she didn't see another man come up behind her and point a gun at her head. She tried not to show how nervous she was. "Drop the gun and come with me. NOW!"

Vala decided she didn't have any choice but to do so. _So close_. She thought, with frustration, as she dropped her gun. She held up her hands. "Come with me, quickly." The voice told her shoving her head with the gun to her shoulder. She obeyed and went forward. She wanted to break into a run but knew her chances weren't good of getting away alive. This man was trained.

Vala allowed the man to push her all the way to the Stargate, observing her options the whole way. Her one and only chance of escape was through the Stargate. Although, what she didn't understand was why this man, involved in a civil war, was taking a hostage and dragging her off world.

She waited as the man dialed the gate. She knew she had few options and as soon as the wormhole was established she wasted no time in bolting forward and running through the Stargate. Three and a half seconds later she was greeted by two men pointing their guns at her. Before she could get any farther, they shot her. One was a bullet wound to her shoulder and the other was a stun weapon set so high that she was instantly on the ground before she could even feel the pain in her shoulder.

The man walked in through the gate calmly after her and instructed the guards, "Set up a bed over there, make sure she doesn't die. We need her. Then just wait for them to come, because they certainly will."

-----

Back at the SGC, the team was suiting up for a mission to P41-890, Daniel was still having a hard time with what had happened, but he tried to keep himself together in front of the others.

"You sure you don't want to skip out on this one Jackson? I know you're still having trouble..." Cam was saying before Daniel cut him off.

"I'm fine." Daniel demanded. After Jack had left Daniel had taken Vala's dress home and hung it up in the farthest spot back in his closet and hidden her letter in his desk on base. He hadn't said a word about her since Jack had left and he didn't intend to.

"If your sure..." Mitchell said, shrugging as they all walked into the gate room. They all thought Daniel should face his problems, instead of hiding from them, but they were all afraid he'd freak out at them if they said anything.

Daniel had felt many urges to go and find Vala but swept the idea from his mind and tried to forget about her and how she broke his heart.

**A/N: Reviews?? Keep 'em clean. We forgot to mention that this chapter. Thanks ya guys! **


	7. Disaster or Peace?

**A/N: Not really sure why this took us so long to get up here. Oooops! But here it is! Please review! **

**Disclaimer: We don't own it but if we did ,do you realize how dramatic it would be??  
**

As SG1 stepped through the gate, they were expecting a normal, day-to-day, mission; but they encountered something a lot different.

Daniel was glad he had come.

The first thing they noticed was the two men pointing guns at them, but that didn't affect them much, because the five of them outnumbered the two men, but the next thing they noticed was another man, holding another gun over a woman with dark hair, and blood covering her. "Don't move!" The man called to them, "I don't want to hurt anyone more then they are already hurt! That is not my goal!"

Daniel froze, staring at the bloody woman the man was pointing his gun at. He could not mistake that dark mane of hair, and he could not mistake the pale, pale face. "Is...Is she...?"

"She's not dead!" The man called to them, "Least not yet. Put the weapons down."

Daniel exchanged glances with the others and they all unhooked their guns and set them on the ground. Daniel was worried sick for Vala and didn't want to do anything to cause the man with the gun to her head to pull the trigger. "What do you want?" Daniel asked.

"I want you to release Cargiff, then you can have your friend back." The man said, glaring at them.

"We'll do anything---"

"Why do you want him?" Mitchell cut across Daniel.

"My motives are not in question," The man replied.

"They sorta are. You see, this guy," Mitchell pointed at Daniel, "If you asked him to jump off a cliff to save her he would. And the rest of us would sure like to have her alive, as much as the next--Well, not maybe as much as the next guy, since the next guy is Daniel, but you get the point! But Cargiff is dangerous, so tell us why you want him."

"Well he just so happens to be a good friend of mine."

"Didn't know he was capable of friendship, but fine. We'll talk to our people, on one condition, and that is that you two stay out of trouble. Start hurting people and we'll know it. You hear?" Cam told him, "Sam, contact Landry, please."

Sam nodded and turned to dial the gate, quickly explaining the situation.

After thinking it through, the General agreed, under the same conditions Cam had already mentioned and sent Cargiff through the gate with a couple of airmen to make sure both ends of the deal were held up.

As soon as Cargiff was through the gate, Daniel pushed past the two men with guns to Vala's side. "If she dies," he glared at the man, "If she dies..." His threat ended there. He pulled a bandage out of his bag and wrapped it around Vala's bleeding shoulder, before picking her up and carrying her back to the others. "Lets get out of here."

"Be careful," Sam warned checking Vala's wound while Cam dialed the gate.

Daniel nodded, though he hardly needed to be told to be careful, he carried Vala gently, like she was made of porcelain and could break at any moment.

Upon their arrival at the SGC, Vala was pried from Daniel's arms, placed on a gurney and rushed to the infirmary.

Daniel watched as they carried her away, worried for her, but relieved that she was home. Even if she would choose not to stay. Though he was hoping to be able to convince her to stay.

Hours passed. She had lost a lot of blood and the bullet wound had been more than two days old. Dr. Lam didn't know the effects it would have on her.

Daniel stayed by Vala's side as long as he was allowed.

Sam entered and pulled a chair up to Daniel and said, "Want to talk?''

He was grateful for her company, but just shrugged to answer her question. He was holding tightly to Vala's hand. Wishing she'd wake up. "Do you think she'll be okay?" He asked Sam.

"Physically, I'm sure she'll recover just fine," Sam replied.

"Physically...? So, you don't think she'll be mentally fine, then?"

"I think you two have a lot to talk about. But remember, she left to protect you. Look," Sam said, reaching for Vala's left hand that Daniel wasn't holding and placed it in his. There, on her finger, he could see that she had not removed her engagement ring. "Lots of talking, maybe crying," She whispered patting her friend's back and leaving.

Daniel watched as Sam left, grateful for her friendship.

As he held Vala's hands in his, he hoped she would be alright. He wanted that chance to talk. He _needed_ that chance to talk.

But Vala slept on for many hours.

The whole time she did, Daniel stayed by her side. Eventually people had had to bring him food, because he wouldn't leave. He didn't want Vala to wake up without him being there.

However, when she _did_ wake up, he couldn't figure if it was good or bad.

Heavy eyelids opened slowly then flickered, adjusting to the light

"Vala!" Daniel said, relief and happiness flooding through him as he continued to hold both of her hands in his.

He was confused and dismayed when she pulled both of her hands from him.

Vala stared at him, as if trying to place where she had seen him. "Daniel....?" She asked slowly, glancing around quickly. "Well, I would say this is a pleasant surprise, but... Where am I?" She demanded, trying to sit up and visibly cringing at the pain before trying to paste on one of her fake smiles.

He stared at her, confused. "Vala? What are you talking about?" He asked, touching her cheek gently. "You're home."

She grabbed his hand with her left hand (since her right was constricted by the sling from her wound) and said "Okay, this is slightly odd. Last time I saw you, you hated me, and if my memory serves me correctly, _this _is not home."

"Vala...What do you mean?"

"What do you think I mean?" She questioned. "Prometheus? _Thief?_"

"You mean..." He broke off, before continuing. "You mean, that's all that you remember?" He felt his heart shatter within him. "Doctor Lam!" He called out, his voice near panic.

Upon being called, Dr. Lam appeared. "Vala!" She said enthusiastically. "You're awake!" She was quite pleased and started checking Vala's scanners.

"Um, excuse me, you know me...how again?" She questioned, sitting up, slowly this time and dropping Daniel's hand which she had pried away from her face.

Daniel glanced at Dr. Lam, then got to his feet. "I need...Something." He said, as he hurried away, with no further explanation. He had to get out of that room.

Carolyn instructed some nurses to prepare equipment for some brain scans. "So, Vala...You don't remember anything about Stargate Command?" She asked, redirecting her attention to Vala. 

"Um.... Stargate Command? She questioned, reluctant to let the doctor mess with her. "For almost the past four years you have been here, at Stargate Command, on a team with a group of people called SG1. However, less than a few days ago you left in order to...protect someone. Someone had taken you hostage and used you to free one of their friends." She explained, prepping Vala for her brain scan.

"I left to...protect someone? You mean, someone other then me?" She asked, sceptically.

"Yeah, actually, you did. You've changed a lot."

"Uh huh." She didn't believe it, "And I guess, I'm in some kind of 'relationship' with him, then?" She asked, speaking of Daniel.

"Slightly." Carolyn said, glancing over to her and taking her blood pressure before she got her brain scans set up. She looked down at the woman staring up at her. "On our planet, it is custom for the men, when they ask a woman to marry them, to give them a ring as a symbol of their engagement." Then, she picked up Vala's left hand and brought it up to Vala's face.

"Oh dear..." Vala said, she was silenced for a moment, then finally said, "Look, I hate to break it to you, but _this_, " She motioned to the ring on her finger. "Was probably just an elaborate plot, I do a lot of those. Is he rich or something?"

"If you consider ancient, old as dirt, artifacts to be valuable, then, I suppose."

"No. You can't make much money off of those...What was I doing, then?" She asked, really confused. It wasn't like her to con someone who didn't have _something_ she could steal from them. She didn't go around just randomly pretending to be in love unless she could gain something from it.

"Well, if you want the truth you'd have to ask yourself. After I do a few scans I can find out for sure, but everything should come back to you eventually. But I can't be sure."

"No...No, I don't want scans," She said, shifting uncomfortably, "I would much rather leave, if you don't mind."

"Unfortunately, I don't think that could be allowed."

"What do you mean? I was out there on my own before! I have free will! I--"

"You have to stay here! At least until you are in a stable position! You lost all your memories from being here at the SGC, you suffered from minor hypothermia and you have a bullet wound in your shoulder," Dr. Lam argued.

Vala tried to think of something to say in return, to defend her point, but nothing came. Perhaps her skills of argument had been lost as well, she wondered. She just sighed and settled into her pillow. "As soon as I am well I'm leaving."

"We'll see." Doctor Lam decided to say, but not elaborate. She truly thought Vala would end up choosing to stay, but that was her being optimistic, she hoped they could help her with her lost memories.

After everything was set up, Dr. Lam ran her scans.

~*~*~*~*~*~ 

Meanwhile, Daniel sat in his office. He felt horrible. He'd been filled with hope that maybe, now that Vala was home, he'd be able to convince her to stay. That he'd convince her that since they did life threatening things every day, her leaving wouldn't make him any safer.

But now, all she remembered about him was that day on the _Prometheus_. It broke his heart. Because that Vala, the one he had met that day, was _not_ the same Vala he had asked to marry him. She was so very different from who she had been. To have her not remember any more of him then that one day, he felt he had lost her forever.

He knew she wouldn't want to stay. She would want to run. As soon as Dr. Lam said that she was healthy she was as good as gone. He knew that all she had cared about when they were on the _Prometheus_ was taking advantage of him. How could she be the same person?

Half of him felt he should go be with her...Another half of him thought it was only a bad idea. What would she care if he was there? He sighed and got to his feet, he decided to go talk to Dr. Lam, and find out what she had discovered.

**A/N:Who will give us a loverly lovely review!!? Thanks you guys! **


	8. Hope

**A/N: Well, I decided to give you a double update because you've all been SO patient with us! Anyway, if WillowEchoRiver asks.... don't tell her! ;) **

**Disclaimer:We do not own this... bummer.**

Dr. Lam sat at the table in the briefing room, stacking her papers together nervously. She knew she had to inform everyone in the room of Vala's condition, and that included Daniel.

Daniel paced back in forth in the back of the room, while the others on the team sat in their chairs, watching him sadly.

"Doctor Jackson, please, sit." The General instructed him, motioning to a chair.

Daniel hesitated, but nodded, and sat down without saying a word. But he couldn't help but feel the emptiness of Vala's vacant seat beside him.

Satisfied the General continued, "Carolyn, please." He said gesturing towards the group that had gathered. "I think everyone is ready." He said, folding his hands in front of him.

Carolyn nodded, and glanced down at the scans in front of her. "Well, medically, I'm not sure how much we can do at this point. We can run more tests, but right now, I think our best hope of a full recovery is for her friends to sit with her...If, in a couple of days, that doesn't help her begin remembering, we can try further measures, but I don't want to rush into brain surgery if it isn't absolutely necessary. It's pretty risky, especially since right now we can't pinpoint exactly what caused her memory loss. But..." She said, glancing at Daniel, "I think right now, we have every reason to hope for the best. She doesn't seem to be in any immediate danger, but more tests will tell that."

"Anything else, Doc?" Cam asked, arms folded, waiting for all the information.

"I need permission to run the tests--"

"Granted." General Landry replied.

"From Dr. Jackson." She finished.

"Please, do what you can." Daniel replied.

Nodding, she continued, "There is a slight problem. She wants to leave and we can't keep her here against her will."

"What do you suggest?" The General questioned.

"As a doctor, I've already given my suggestions. As a friend, I think she needs to be loved on like crazy and not distanced. If she's distanced she will hate it here, as if it's not dreary enough, which she has expressed to me on a number of occasions, she isn't going to want to be here any longer than it takes to heal up and get a healthy report. Everyone needs to show her they love her. Because, quite honestly, she still thinks she has to be on the run." Carolyn finished.

Daniel nodded, "Alright, we'll do that," Then he asked, "But can I ask..._Why _can't we keep her here against her will?"

Dr. Lam gave Daniel a look and then back at the General putting all her papers back together in a stack.

Daniel just sighed and looked at the General, "Sir, could I be dismissed, please?"

General Landry nodded, "Yes, you're all dismissed."

They all got up to leave, and as the others were going the General said, "Doctor Jackson,"

"Yes sir?"

"If you want her to stay, I'd suggest going to see her."

"I'm on my way now, sir."

Daniel made his way to the infirmary, however, Sam had beaten him and was sitting in a chair beside Vala's bed, chatting. He didn't want to interrupt, but he needed to talk to her, to ask her to stay.

"Mmmmm," Vala commented as Sam continued talking to her, staring down at her hand.

"Vala, I know this all seems a little strange, but there are people here who love you. Dare I say it, I'm one of them. I don't want you to leave as soon as Dr. Lam gives you a spotless bill of health." Sam was saying.

Vala looked up past Sam at Daniel behind her.

Sam noticed she wasn't really paying attention and turned. Her eyes locked with Daniel's and held each others' gaze for a few seconds before Sam turned back to Vala and stood.

"I'm gonna leave you with Daniel now, is that okay?" Sam questioned, already leaving slightly.

She didn't say a word. Her eyes were locked on Daniel's and she just nodded slightly as Sam walked away. She hadn't talked to Daniel since when she first woke up. She thought he hated her, but having him there, standing only a few feet away made her heart pound and she was embarrassed when her heart monitor started going up and was noticeably louder.

Daniel came and sat down in a chair beside her, he was silent for a moment, but after a second he found his voice, "Can I ask you something?"

"I don't see why not..." She said, though hesitating slightly.

"Tomorrow, can I bring something to show you? I just think it might help..."

"Certainly. It's not as if I _like_ supposedly not being able to remember the last few years of my life..." She commented, shaking her head.

"I wouldn't think so...."

"Do you really think that you're the only one that my not being able to remember anything is affecting?" She demanded. "That nice, pretty doctor that was here did some lovely scans on my brain, I believe and came up with the same conclusion that I already have. I can't remember the past few years." She replied.

"I know and I'm sorry I left yesterday, I'm not sure why that was my first reaction and I'm truly sorry." He replied. He wanted to take her hand and hold it in his own, but knew she would feel like drawing back.

"You know, that's what I don't understand." She replied, quite loudly. Luckily there seemed to be no one else who needed Dr. Lam's attention because the infirmary was relatively empty. "Last time I saw you, I'm pretty sure you hated me. Or, in your words, thought I was a 'fruitcake'.....? Well, I don't see how we could have come from that day on your very impressive ship to this day today. That nice, pretty doctor I was talking about-- She informed me that we were going to get married. I can't even understand _why _I would marry you if you're as poor as a peasant and you really, honestly don't have anything I could gain except for the fact that you are exceptionally nice looking." She said, giving him a wink.

Daniel hung his head slightly. This was the sort of behavior he hadn't appreciated early off in their relationship.

There was silence for a moment, but after a pause, Daniel said, "Are you going to let me try to help you, Vala?" He asked, gently, "Because I can't help unless you're willing to _try_ to remember."

"Give me one good reason why I should." She said, wishing she could fold her arms for emphasis.

"Because...Because I love you, and I would never do anything unless I thought for sure it would help you. All we want is to help you. We care about you. You were happy here, before..."

She sat for a moment in silence, wanting to believe what he said was true. But no one treated her with kindness. She was a thief and a liar and no one had any reason to help her. "And how do I know this isn't some elaborate plot to get me to trust you so that you can just get to me...or... I don't know, kill me?"

"Would you like me to prove it to you?" He asked her, gently. Understanding where the lack of trust was coming from.

"Well, yes, that would be nice." She said, skeptically.

He nodded, and got to his feet, "I'll be right back."

He returned a few minutes later with a large box in his arms, he set it down on the floor in front of his chair and then sat down., The box had a large book inside it, with laced white fabric as a cover. The rest of the contents in the box were bits of paper she couldn't see very well from where she was laying in her infirmary bed.

"This isn't finished...It was supposed to be a wedding present, but this seemed like an appropriate time..." He handed her the book, not sure how she'd take it.

Inside, she found letters that seemed to have passed between them, just silly little love notes and things, there were also pictures of all of SG1, but mostly the two of them. She couldn't believe it.

She read a few of the notes, trying to hold in her smiles. She wouldn't let Daniel know how much she appreciated it. She had yet to form her opinion, but she felt herself feeling oddly attracted to this man.

_You absolutely MUST take these dates to the General and get off work! If you are working on our wedding day, I'll fall down and die and even Dr. Lam, the best of the best, won't be able to revive me._

March 20th-30th.

Love,  
Vala

It was her handwriting and there was no denying it, she dotted all her i's with hearts and her S's were more of wobbly, squiggly lines than anything else. Beneath the note was a handful of pictures that she pulled out and looked at, one by one. There was on of a group of people, she assumes to be her team from what she had been told. They were sitting around a table. There was a man she had only seen twice since she was confined to the infirmary and hadn't caught his name, who looked like he was telling a joke because Samantha, whom she had met for the second time before Daniel had come, who sat there looking amused as she looked at the man. Vala herself was staring up at Daniel with a quizzical look who was staring at Cam, trying not to smile himself. She did smile as she stared at this picture and then picked up another note to read...

_Daniel, I wrote you a little poem, because I was bored and you were absorbed in your work, and I was thinking about you...But I usually am, then again, but here it is! Hope you like it, darling;_

''Poor Daniel, with his pretty eyes,  
Apparently, he always dies,"

I love you!  
Vala,

"Come now!" Vala said, indignantly, but looking a little amused as she looked up at Daniel, "Please tell me that I wasn't the only one who wrote embarrassing notes!"

"Page three," He couldn't help but be a little amused, but he still wished she would just _remember_.

As Vala turned the page she looked up and said, "Now tell me, why didn't we just, I don't know, talk to each other?" She questioned, glancing at a picture of them. It was the two of them. She was holding the camera with both hands and had apparently had caught him by surprise because he was looking over at her rather than at the camera. She smiled at the silly picture.

"We just enjoyed it." He stated, wishing she would remember and stop questioning something that she participated in.

Vala looking back down and read the next note.

_Dearest,_

I got your little note and was greatly amused by the poem you wrote. I thought it was only fair that I write you your own little note:

Lovely Vala, She is not a liar,  
But on our missions she brings a hair dryer.

Love you, honey,  
Daniel

Vala closed the book abruptly, and shoved it into his arms. "I would like to get some rest now, please." She said, refusing to look at the man in the seat next to her. She didn't know how to handle all these sweet little love letters and cute pictures of them together so happily. Had she really had this lovely life that she just simply couldn't remember? It was something she wasn't used to. If this was true, then it wasn't exactly fair she'd been made to forget it. It seemed she was missing out on the best time of her life. But how did these people love her? When did she grow to love them?

He didn't know what had brought on her sudden change in demeanor but knew he needed to respect her. "Alright, Vala." He said, taking the book and carefully placing it back.

He was walking out the door, and after a moment of hesitation she called, "Daniel!"

He stopped, and put his head back through the door frame, "Yeah?"

"I didn't finish looking at it...Could you bring it back? Later tonight? Or tomorrow, perhaps?" She asked, slowly, still not looking at him.

He smiled ,returned the book to the table next to her bed, patted her on the shoulder, smiled and left. Maybe there was hope after all.

**A/N: There you are, now I must get WillowEchoRiver to update next time... Reviews!? PLEASE? I gave you a DOUBLE update! **


	9. You Can't Make Me Love You

**A/N: Here is chapter nine. =) Hope you enjoy. =)  
**

**Disclaimer:We do not own this... bummer.**

Dr. Lam approached the woman who had a stack of papers and a large book on her lap. "Great news, Vala. You can get out of this infirmary today. I'm sorry to say that you'll be confined to at least this planet until you are fully healed." She said, going over to get the I.V. out of Vala's arm.

"Thank you," Vala said, cheerfully. At least getting out of this room was a start, right? "Have you...Found anything out? About what might have caused...."

"I believe the mixture of slight hypothermia and the cause of a stun weapon caused a reaction in the brain that either jumbled it, trying to place the memories, or completely wiped them. I'm still working on it." She replied, pulling out the I.V.

"So....Do you think..." She asked, slowly.

"I think we should hope for the best...Don't work hard trying to remember, just try to relax. You have friends here, and before we take any desperate measures in surgery, we want to see if they can help you remember...Just try to be comfortable, it might be more strained if it's forced."

"Alright.. But its so... boring around here!" She said looking aro9und as Dr. Lam helped get everything off her lap and sit her up. "Take it easy on your arm."

"I will, thank you for helping me." She said, as she eagerly got to her feet. Though a little unsteady after days lying there, she managed to get her footing.

"I've called Daniel and he's going to come here and show you around. Is that okay?"

Vala hesitated only slightly before saying, "Yeah, okay." Daniel had been perfectly nice to her over the past few days, and that was what made her uncomfortable. She wasn't used to having people _care_ about her... But he treated her so lovingly and kindly, and all the time she couldn't help but think about all those little notes they'd written to each other. If she had been at this 'Stargate Command' for years, then she probably _hadn't_ just been conning Daniel, and that was very strange...

But that's what scared her. How had she ever allowed herself to let down her guard that she had kept up so well for so many years. It was as if over night they had come crashing down. But she didn't want to let Daniel know that she felt as if she sort of, in an odd way, belonged here.

Soon Daniel arrived in the infirmary and smiled at Vala in that tender way that he always did, "Hey, how do you feel?"

"Relieved to be out of this room." She said, with a long sigh as she followed him out the door.

"Yeah," He couldn't help but smile to himself, "That part of you hasn't changed." He tried to be friendly and kind to Vala, but it was hard for him. He knew that right now, she was still that girl who was ready to con him and that was hard. But he couldn't help but hope, that deep down, there was something in her that was the same. That she really could be trusted.

Vala looked around the area, following Daniel out. She wanted to get out of the stupid confinement. What should she be confined for? She was, after all, supposed to be their friend. She wanted a way out and she was very good at bypassing almost any type of security.

"So...Want to see your second-favorite place?" Daniel offered her,

"And what is that?" She asked, curiously.

"The place where we get food," He said with a grin, though still not entirely comfortable around her.

"That sounds delightful...But where is my first favorite place?" She wondered,

"My office."

She didn't hold in the obnoxious laugh that erupted through her lips. "Is this a very interesting office?" She asked, considering.

"Nope, not really, or not to you, anyway. In fact, you probably didn't like it that much...You're always trying to get me to leave. But you sure spent a lot of time in there..."

"Well food sounds mighty wonderful. Lead on." She prodded. she still wanted to get out. She felt confined and pushed into a smaller space then she could handle. She didn't want to stay there for the rest of her life, even if she had, at one point, been engaged to this man.

"Well food sounds mighty wonderful. Lead on." She prodded. she still wanted to get out. She felt confined and pushed into a smaller space then she could handle. She didn't want to stay there for the rest of her life, even if she had, at one point, been engaged to this man. "I want to ask you something." Vala stated, looking at Daniel.

"Yeah?" He asked, worriedly.

"Are you quite certain our affection was...mutual? Not that you aren't _very_ attractive..."

Turning to face her, looking her straight in the eyes said, "Yes."

Almost getting the shivers she replied, "You know, I've always been great at conning people." She didn't want him to think that whatever she was before was the same person she was right now.

"No. I knew you were good at conning people...But this...This was real...In fact, I _thought_ that it was all a big joke for awhile... You told me how you felt and I thought you were kidding. But you weren't, Vala, you meant it." He said, sadly. He hated that none of it was working. It had been a few days and she had no memories whatsoever. He was beginning to lose hope. But she'd lost her memory once before and there was no reason she could not get it back again. But he would not let her leave.

"Daniel." She said firmly, turning toward him and stopping. "I don't love you. I can't say I'm sorry either, because I have no idea who you are. Sure, maybe I did once have a place here. But I don't. Not now." She said.

Daniel was silent for a moment before saying, slowly. "You may not love me, but at one point you did, and all I can say is that you once told me...You once told me that you had never truly been happy anywhere else. Now, I know you (even though you don't know me), and I know that you are _very _good at running away. I know you could get passed all of our guards if you wanted too....But, if you want to be happy again, then you should stay here...Whether or not you love me." He said, staring her directly in the eyes.

She looked away, "I don't know why you think you're so great, but I..." She couldn't figure out what to say. She was never at a loss for words.

"Oh, I'm not saying _I_ was what made you happy...But you _were_ happy here. I didn't say anything about being great...All I'm saying, is that if you walk away from here, you're walking away from your best chance of a happy life."

"How do you know? I could have a perfectly happy life! I could go out there and I could make a happier life for myself than I ever had here! And do you want to know what the best part of it is? I'll never know! I won't remember ever having a life here! So, if you'll excuse me. I think I'll make my request to leave now." She shouted.

He grabbed her good arm, "What are you thinking?! Seriously, _tell_ me what's wrong with you?!" He couldn't help but raise his voice when she had raised hers, he knew he was supposed to be kind to her, and he was trying, but she just wouldn't listen... "You aren't happy out there! You've told me before your not happy out there! If you would just _wait_ and give us a chance to help you!"

"What's wrong with _me_? Nothing! I haven't changed one bit!"? She shouted back.

"I...I...I don't care if you don't love me! I don't care if you don't remember me! Because I will _always_ love you! And I would let you go, if I thought you'd be happy out there...But you won't be! You'll just keep running, you'll just keep stealing! And you don't want that! This is your _home_! You left because you thought you were protecting me, but now I'm going to fight to keep you here because I'm trying to protect you! I love you too much to let you go somewhere that _will_ hurt you! I'm not going to lose you again!"

She couldn't even respond to that. She just stared at him and then spoke in a barely audible whisper, "I don't belong here."

His voice softened, then. He looked at her with gentle, loving eyes. "You belong here...And you don't belong anywhere else... Tell me a place where you belong."

She pressed her lips and turned her head away. If she could have folded her arms, she would have. She wasn't about to tell a stranger that she had no place she belonged. Maybe he already knew it, but there was no way she was going to come out and say it. Without looking at him she asked, "What are you going to do? Hold me prisoner here?"

Daniel looked at her for a moment, thinking over his answer. "The truth is, I don't think it's possible to hold you prisoner, Vala." He said, softly. "You're too good at running away for that...But I will tell you, that I will do everything in my power to have you stay here...I will do everything I can, but I won't ever hurt you, I will treat you like the Vala that I love...Like the Vala that loves me too, even though I know you aren't the same person you were."

She didn't even want to argue with that. It was like she had started and argument that she would lose. How could she ever lose an argument?

"Now, we can keep arguing, or I can show you what I planned on showing awhile ago but forgot about...Would you like to see it?" He offered.

Vala stared at the ground and then looked up at him and said, "Fine, but don't try and convince me to stay."

**A/N: will you PLEASE review!?  
**


	10. Lost & Found

**A/N: Well we hope you all like chapter ten. We've reached the double digits! Yeah!  
**

**Disclaimer:We do not own this... bummer.**

"It's at my house..." Daniel told her, as they walked down the halls of the SGC. "Can I trust you to come with me and not run? Cause otherwise I can bring it here."

"Look, just because I'm in this facility does not mean there is no way for me to get out!" She said pointedly.

"All I'm asking is if I can trust you to come with me, Vala."

"Of course you can, darling." She said. But it wasn't in her 'I've fallen head over heels in love with you' sort of darling; it was her flirtatious 'darling'. Daniel knew the difference between the two like the back of his hand, and he gave a sigh.

"You know what, I'll just bring it here." He said, turning around and walking down the hall.

"No, don't leave me here! It's gray, and...and dull and... and I _will _be gone when you get back!" She threatened.

Daniel stopped in his tracks, he definitely didn't want _that_ to happen. Besides, if he brought her along and she ran off, she wouldn't get very far. They'd found her once before, and that time she'd been kidnapped, which was very different. "Fine. You can come, but behave." He warned.

A grin like the Cheshire cat came over her, "Of course darling."

He groaned, "Come on," He said, leading the way. "You're powers of getting your way have obviously not changed."

"That's because you love me." She winked. Her demeanor had changed from serious to playful.

"Please stop that," He begged, he hated this. He hated the power she _knew_ she had over him. This was Vala before they were in love, but he still loved her, and she knew it.

"Stop what?" She questioned innocently.

Daniel just shook his head.

Ten minutes later, Daniel had _somehow_ managed to get permission from the General to take Vala off base, and they were driving in his car. Daniel had been put in charge of taking care of her.

As they drove in silence, Vala did some thinking. She wondered about the notes she had been reading and all those pictures..... March 20th? What was today? Her head swarming with thoughts she questioned casually, "What is today?"

"Saturday," Daniel said, wondering why she asked as he stared at the road in front of him.

"No, I mean what is the date, darling." Vala said, rolling her eyes.

His voice wavered slightly. "March 20th."

"Oh." Was all she said as she shrunk further down into her seat.

Daniel didn't say anything; he just stared thoughtfully out the front window and at the road.

"Is this your house?" She questioned.

"Actually, it's our house. You were going to move your stuff three days ago." He said almost inaudibly.

"Oh," She said, quietly. Why did she feel so horrible for this man she barely knew? She hated that feeling.

Before she'd registered what had happened, he'd gotten out of the car and opened her door for her, holding out his hand for her to help her out.

She rejected his help, and stepped passed him.

He shut his eyes and willed himself not to let it effect him and shut the door after her. He walked ahead of her and unlocked the door, opening it for her. Inside the house was lovelier than the outside. She wished she had a home like this, but knew she would never live here. She would never be able to remember her life and he would never want her here. She didn't need him.

"It's just in my closet, I'll be right back." He said, trusting her not to run in the two minutes he'd be gone.

She decided not to leave, at least not yet. She wondered around the room, looking at pictures on the wall of two of them, while she waited for him to return.

She stared at the pictures, but not able to look at them turned and ignored them as Daniel entered carrying something large and white in his arms.

He laid it gently on the couch, and waited for her to approach, he didn't want to do anything that would set her off.

She stared at it, immediately realizing what it was.

"Oh no..." she muttered under her breath. She loved it. It was so beautiful, but she didn't want to touch it. She had to get out of there. Speaking louder she asked, "Can... can I um... use your bathroom?" She questioned.

The only reason Daniel agreed, was because there was no exit leading out of the bathroom, so he nodded, deciding she wouldn't be able to get away from there. Just as she turned and left the room however, the phone rang.

He ignored it the first time, but then they called again, and deciding it may be the SGC, he hurried to the other room to answer it. "Hello? Oh, hi Sam...Yeah, I know. No, I'll be there soon...yes, she's here. Thanks, but I think I've got it..No...No...Thanks though Sam,"

Vala yanked the shiny ring off he finger, set it on the bathroom counter. Finding some purple stuff she wasn't sure what it was she wrote ''Goodbye" on the mirror and waited for her moment. As soon as she could she ran for the bedroom and unlatched the window. She jumped to the ground and sprinted as fast as she could.

Five minutes later, Daniel was worried; he went to the bathroom door and knocked softly, "Vala?" He called.

No answer.

His eyes shut tightly. He was a fool. He should've known not to bring her here, he should've known not to let her out of his sight.

He stepped into the bathroom, read the 'goodbye' on the mirror, and saw the ring on the counter. His hand shook as he reached out and picked up the ring. He held it tightly in his hand and hurried out the front door. "Vala?!" He called, looking around for her. She was gone. "Vala?!" He tried again.

After a good thirty minutes of searching, Daniel knew he wouldn't find her unless he got help. He felt a tear run down his face as he stepped inside, and dialed the SGC's number.

Valas pace slowed and she took deep breath looking around. She was staring at a restaurant when she started to remember…

_She was sitting at a table with Daniel, he told her he was proud of her, she couldn't help but be happy when he said _that.

__

She stood up, and the next thing she knew in her memory she was being grabbed by a man and led outside, forced into a car.

_Then she was in a room, a woman standing over her, explaining the motive for capturing her. She was afraid, though she wouldn't have admitted it._

__

And then she remembered being confused and afraid, she remembered that she was having a hard time knowing her name, knowing where she was from.

She remembered a diner and a kind man who had help her.

And then she remembered Daniel. Only a small, tiny, moment with Daniel, but an important one, nonetheless.

She was pointing a gun at him, his arms were in the air, he was talking to her.

Then, she had seemed to suddenly know him, she handed him her gun and he hugged her tightly/

She remembered feeling safe.

_No._ She told herself, _No, I am fine on my own. He's not going to be able to find me here. This is miles away from him. _She kept reassuring herself, telling herself she would be okay. But she kept remembering. Only small, flashes of unimportant moments of her life in the past three years. _She remembered always sitting next to him in this big room. She remembered always messing with her little ring._ She reached down, as if to reassure herself of it's presence. But when her fingers touched her left hand she remembered. It was gone.

She took a deep, shuddering, breath, trying to calm herself. How could she act this weak? She'd never needed a man in her life, and she wasn't about to need one now. She'd left him behind, and it was for the better. At least that's what she tried to tell herself.

------- 

"Hey Jackson!" Mitchell called to the almost depressed Daniel. "They found her."

"They did?!" Daniel asked Cameron, hurrying to walk by him. "Where is she? Is she okay?" He asked, worriedly. He was happy they had found her, but he also knew that if she wanted too, she'd run away again.

"She's just inside of town. She must have run a long way." He answered following Daniel.

"Are they bringing her here? Or should I go see her?" He asked, eager to do whatever he could.

"They're afraid that bringing her here would just cause her to run. We're going to get her. We, being our team."

Daniel nodded, eager to go find her.

Ten minutes later…

Vala sat with her back to the entrance, smiling up at the woman who poured something black into her cup. She took a sip and the almost spit it out. The waitress smiled, pulled over some milk and sugar and suggested, "Try these in it."

Vala gave her an appreciative look as she poured in much of the milk and sugar and took a sip, "Much better, thank you." She said, with a smile at the woman.

"Just doing my job," She said cheerfully, hurrying away to the next table.

More memories had been flashing before her since she'd seen the restaurant, and she was beginning to wish she hadn't run. She felt confused and scared, especially because she was beginning to remember little bits of her life at the SGC. Not enough to make her comfortable with these people, but enough to realize she'd made a bad choice running away. Just as she was taking a sip of the improved drink, the door of the restaurant opened sounding off the bell. She didn't even bother to look over to the door. She new she needed some sort of a plan. She had no money to pay the kind lady who had just given her the now whitened liquid and she knew she couldn't stay sitting slumped at a table forever. She contemplated this as she felt someone reach over and touch her bad shoulder. She winced and stiffened, turning to face whomever she was defending herself from.

The first eyes she met with were Daniel's, and she felt frozen in place. She couldn't find the strength to break her gaze from his, and yet, all she wanted to do was look away from him. She felt shame at what she had done, for some odd reason, and that was something she wasn't used to.

The rest of SG1 stood behind Daniel, ready to keep Vala from running, but giving her and Daniel some space.

She took a step away from him, "You can't hold me at your base forever." She warned, although she felt less will to run.

"I know." He responded, clearly not going to keep her from running if she choose to.

Her voice shook as she asked, "So, will you just let me walk right out of here?"

"You don't _want_ us to just let you walk away, Vala."

"And why not?" She questioned.

"Because if you walk away you're going to try and make some kind of life for yourself because you will not be able to use our Stargate to leave this planet. And if you start stealing here, you're going to get locked up. Those are your choices, Vala."

"If I come with you I'm essentially locked up anyway!" She pointed out, frustration and fear filling her voice. She was afraid, because she knew she _wanted_ to go back. Why did she want to be with this man she barely knew?

"You have people who care about you, there."

"I hate it when people care about me! I don't _need_ you to care! I don't _need_ you, Daniel!"

"If you want to stay you won't have to stay on base. Sam said you could live with her to..." HE blinked, as if it was too painful to say. "To stay away from me."

"If you want to stay you won't have to stay on base. Sam said you could live with her to..." He blinked, as if it was too painful to say. "To stay away from me."

She gave Sam an distrusting look, "Would you really?" She asked, slowly.

Sam nodded, "Of course. We can go there now." She said, uncrossing her arms.

Vala nodded, slowly. She stepped passed Daniel to walk besides Sam.

"Excuse me miss, your going to have to pay for that coffee!" The waitress called.

"Right, sorry about that, she's...having a hard time." Daniel explained, putting money down on the table.

The waitress nodded, trying to be understanding. "Thank you. Come again." She said, cleaning off the table and picking up the money.

**A/N: will you PLEASE review!?  
**


	11. A New Offer

**A/N: So, I don't really know why we haven't updated in a while... =) Anyway, we would like reviews, but... if you don't want to take the... -sniff- sixty seconds to -sniff- do it then... -sniff- we'll be.... -sniff- okay! -bursts into tears- Sorry, I'll try and get a hold of myself..... Without further ado, Chapter Eleven!  
**

**Disclaimer:We do not own this... bummer.**

Daniel sat in his office quietly, for once however, he was not translating or looking at some artifact. He was sitting there, thoughtfully, holding Vala's engagement ring in his hand. It had been three days since they had found her, and she had stayed at Sam's home, without trying to run. Perhaps, she really was better off without him, then. The thought caused him pain.

As he sat in his office his phone rang. Startled, he reached for it and picked it up, "Hello, this is Dr. Jackson."

"Dr. Jackson? Do you always answer your phone like that?"

"Hi Jack." Daniel said settling back into his chair.

"Hey, I heard someone wanted to take you to Atlantis. They were going to ask you themselves, but I told them you were going through a sort of crisis and that I'd talk to you."

"Oh...What did they say, exactly?" Daniel asked Jack, slowly.

"They need you in Atlantis for an indefinite amount of time. " He responded.

He paused for a moment, thinking everything through carefully. "I'm going to talk to the General. But you can tell them yes unless they hear from me otherwise." Daniel told Jack, as he got to his feet, preparing to go talk to General Landry.

The little chat that he had with General Landry seemed to be useless. The General had already known and was waiting for Jack to call him. General Landry had also already agreed as long as things were sorted out with Vala. The General told Daniel to make sure everything was okay with Vala before making any rash decisions.

"Vala doesn't really want to have anything to do with me sir, I think the best thing I can do for her is give her space. She might actually be able to find a place for herself here if I'm not getting in the way of that." Daniel had this painful picture in his mind, of leaving and Vala being all the more comfortable without him. He had an image of her finding a place on SG1 once more, with no memories of him, making a life for herself there. And then occasionally running into each other when work made their paths cross. It was a painful picture.

Vala on SG1. Without him? Yet, he felt he needed her much more then she could ever need him.

"Just talk with her about it, or at least call Colonel Carter on the subject." The General advised.

"Yes, sir. And thank you." Daniel said, reaching out and shaking the General's hand.

~*~*~*~

Not twenty minutes later he was pulling into the driveway of Sam's home. Not really sure who he was going to talk to, yet. He didn't know if it would be wiser to talk to Sam first, or to just tell Vala where he was planning to go.

He approached the door and knocked. The door opened to reveal Sam.

"Oh, hey Daniel. Come on in." She said, opening the door wider to allow him to come inside her small house.

"Thanks Sam. So... how's she doing?" He questioned.

Sam turned and looked toward the TV and he followed her gaze. Vala sat on the couch in front of the TV with the sound almost blasted. He had wondered why it was so loud when he walked in... Vala was sprawled out on the couch with a pillow on top of her head and she appeared to be asleep. "That's all she's been doing. Sleeping and watching my TV." Sam said.

"Listen, Sam," Daniel said, lowering his voice even though it was likely Vala wouldn't hear over the blasting television. "I'm..." He glanced at the couch in front of the TV, and then back at Sam, "I think I'm going to go work at Atlantis for a while." He told her, quietly.

Sam beckoned him to come into her kitchen, "How long?" She asked quietly.

"I'm not sure yet. I just think she needs some space. I'll come back, it's not like I'm going to live there. Just, for the time being it might be better." He answered.

"Are you sure this is a good idea? I mean...I don't know, it seems a little sudden of a choice. I know you think things through, but I'm worried perhaps your letting your...current circumstances...chase you away. As your friend, I think you should think this through a little more."

"I've thought it through a lot, it will be best for both me and Vala."

"I'm not sure that's true...I know you love Atlantis, Daniel, but she might need you here..."

"I'll come back!" He insisted, he had a calm but determined sort of voice.

"I won't stop you if that's what you want to do, I"m only saying, I think she wants you here."

"She hasn't said a single word to me or made any indication of wanting contact with me since we found her. It's been almost three weeks now. Sam..." He said, glancing into the other room to make sure that the woman on the couch was still sleeping. "Three weeks ago was our wedding, Sam. Or at least, when it was supposed to be..."

"If this is what you want to do..." Sam said, deciding arguing wasn't going to help anything. "I just want you to promise to come back if she needs you."

"I can be here in an instant. Atlantis has a ZPM and I can get right through the gate." He said.

Sam nodded, and gave Daniel a sisterly hug, "I hope we'll have you back soon."

"Thanks, Sam."

"Do you want to say goodbye to her?" She motioned to Vala on the couch.

"Not right now, I wouldn't want to wake her. I'll stop by and tell you both goodbye before I leave. Okay?" He said heading towards the door.

Sam nodded, "I would offer to help you pack, but I think leaving her alone here is a bad idea..." She said, walking him towards the door.

"Don't worry about it, I've got it covered." He assured her, "Thanks, though."

"Make sure to come by before you leave. I start work in a month, so she has to be comfortable to either be left alone or make the journey to the SGC." Sam said, giving Daniel a sisterly hug.

"I'll make sure to call frequently to see if you need anything." He replied.

"Thanks, I'll talk to you soon," She said, as he stepped out the door, "Daniel," She added as he was walking towards his car.

"Yeah?" He asked, stopping and turning to look at her.

"Just think about it, okay? Don't just run away from her."

"I'm not, Sam, thank you though, for caring." He smiled and waved at her as he turned and went to his car.

Sam turned to find Vala yawning and turning down the volume on the television. "Who was that?" She questioned, getting up from her cocoon.

"Daniel," Sam informed her, gently. "Are you hungry?" She quickly changed the subject.

Vala caught the subject change, "No, I'm not hungry. Why did he stop by? To check up on my health?" She said, rolling her eyes.

Sam hesitated for a moment, "No, no he wasn't. He wanted to come tell me that he's leaving, actually."

"Then, why did he come in the first place?" She asked, opening up the fridge to pull something out to eat.

"He wanted to talk about it, it's kind of a big decision." Sam said, shrugging.

"I don't get it," Vala asked, folding her arms and leaning against the wall as she looked at Sam.

"Daniel is moving to another planet for an...Indefinite amount of time, Vala."

"What? Why!?" She asked dropping her arms to her sides and starting to pace.

"He thinks it'll be the best thing for the both of you. He thinks you need space, that you'll do better if he's gone. And he knows its a good opportunity for him too."

"Oh." She said, leaning up against the counter. "Yeah, I'm sure he's right."

"Vala, he wouldn't hesitate to stay for a moment if he thought you wanted him here." Sam told Vala, gently.

"No, why would I care if he left?" She said, stubbornly, as she turned her back so Sam wouldn't see her face.

"Look, you've been really nice to keep me here. But, maybe it's time you go back to work. I can take care of myself." She responded.

"Look, you've been really nice to keep me here. But, maybe it's time you go back to work. I can take care of myself." She responded.

"If we're going to be totally honest, Vala, or, at least, if _I _am, because I really don't believe you honestly don't care if Daniel leaves, but if I'm gonna be totally honest...i'm a little afraid if I go back to work you'll run again."

"I'm not going to run. Look, I know you feel like I'm a total impostor, but when I hide under my blankets I'm not sleeping. I'm..." She looked up at Sam. "Remembering."

Sam sat down at the kitchen table and motioned for Vala to do the same, then waited for her to go on.

Vala sat down, and stared at her hands, but did not immediately go on. "I just.... I remember a lot of things, okay?" She replied.

"Like what, Vala? Do you remember everything?" Sam looked surprised.

"No, not everything...Just..."

She pushed her chair up an stood, smiling ever so slightly. "Our first girls' day out, oh that was quite an adventure. Too bad my father had to come and crash the party!"

Sam smiled, "Yes..." She wanted to lighten Vala's mood a little, she wanted Vala to feel comfortable, therefore, she had to treat her like a friend, "Did I ever tell you that your father actually asked me out?"

Vala put a hand to her stomach and got a sick look on her face. "That does not surprise me."

Vala put a hand to her stomach and got a sick look on her face. "That does not surprise me."

Sam laughed, "When I got over the initial shock, it was actually a little funny."

"More like disgusting!"

"It's alright Vala, I'm over it." She replied.

"Well, I'm not sure how, that must have been a scarring experience." Vala commented,

"Don't worry about it," She said, with a smile, "Now, do you want to tell me how much else you have remembered?"

"Well, I might have. may have...possibly remembered when Daniel proposed. Weird custom this planet has."

"I don't know, I think it's nice..." Sam said, but she couldn't help but ask, "Vala...If you remember so much, why are you just letting him leave?"

"Well, it's just. It's not the same. It's like I'm looking into someone elses life. It's not really me... I mean, I don't belong here, do I? A woman just like me may have once. But she was so much better than what I am now." She replied.

"Vala, she was _you_, you have to give yourself time. You had a few _years_ here before. You can't expect to get all of this sorted out in a matter of weeks. It just won't work. But that doesn't mean you have to let him leave. Can you honestly tell me you don't love him?"

In a whisper she replied, "No."

**A/N: Will you PLEASE review!? We might cry...  
**


	12. Two Weeks Too Long

**Author's note: We are REALLY REALLY REALLY REALLY REALLY-- Shall I go on?-- REALLY REALLY REALLY REALLY- Well, REALLY TO INFINITE- SORRY!!! Have you ever just had a week on vacation and then come back and never get back to updating? Well that would be me! (DeborahSloane) so...again, SORRY! Enjoy this. =)  
**

**Disclaimer: If we owned stargate we might sound a little bit gangsta. "We _own _it!" Yeah, not even gonna go there. So we don't own stargate.....  
**

A week later, Daniel was packed and pretty much ready to leave for Atlantis. He was prepared, that is. But emotionally, he didn't know quite _what_ he was ready for.

Vala hadn't made any attempt to talk to him, and Daniel was torn between giving her space or calling to make sure she was doing okay. He missed her. He missed his fiance'. He'd always love her, whether or not she got her memories back. But she was so different, and it hurt him. He just missed her.

He sighed as he pulled into the driveway of Sam's home. He wondered if Vala would even acknowledge him when he visited. He hoped so, considering this would be the last time he saw her for a few weeks, maybe a few months. He wondered if he'd stay for years, but he decided now wasn't the time to think about that.

After making arrangements with Sam, Daniel decided to leave his car with her since he wouldn't be needing it. He was scheduled to be beamed onto the Odyssey with everyone else in less than half an hour.

He knocked on Sam's door, and it wasn't long before it opened. "Hey, Daniel, come on in." Sam said, with a smile as she opened the door up wider to let him through.

"Thanks, just wanted to come to say bye...Thanks for letting me keep my car here."

"Don't worry about it. And I'll make sure Vala doesn't drive it, so you don't have to worry."

"Where is Vala, by the way?"

"She might still be sleeping." Sam said, glancing into the living room. "Doesn't look likes shes watching TV." Sam said.

"It's nine already and you think she's asleep?" He questioned, skeptically.

"I'm pretty sure she stayed up late last night watching Charlies Angels reruns." Sam said. "How long do you have?" She questioned.

Daniel glanced down at his watch, "23 minutes."

"And you're sure this is what you want to do?" Sam questioned.

"Yeah, I'm sure...It's ultimately the best thing for both of us. I don't think she'd mind going to the SGC so much if I wasn't there, and Atlantis will be good for me, I think."

"Do you want me to wake her up? I'm sure she would want to say goodbye."

"I...doubt that."

"Why?" She questioned.

"It's just that.... well. She hasn't said a word to me for this whole past month. Don't you think she would have said something by now if she remembered or... even cared?"

"She's just confused, Daniel, I don't think you should write her off as _not caring_ just because she hasn't talked to you. How do you know she's not waiting for you to say something to her?" Sam said, gently. She didn't want to tell him what Vala had told her, because she didn't think it was her place to do so. She felt Vala should tell him.

"That seems highly unlikely to me, Sam."

"Why?" Sam questioned once more.

"Vala is always the one to initiate just about... everything. We've both known her long enough to know that." "But she's going through a hard time, Daniel--"

"Sam, I appreciate this but...I really think I better leave her alone."

"Well, I suppose if this is what you want. But when she's ready to talk, you had better be ready."

"I've been ready, Sam, I just don't know when she'll be ready."

At this opportune moment, Vala opened the door to the room she was occupying and came out. Seeing Daniel, her eyes widened and she said, "Daniel!" but before she could say this he had been beamed up into the Odyssey and was no longer on earth.

Vala froze in place, staring in dismay at the place Daniel had just stood. "He's...He's gone, already?" She asked, disbelievingly, even though she had just seen it in front of her.

"I didn't know he had to leave so soon." Sam said, looking down at her watch. "They were right on time, I guess I just lost track of time." She said

"Sam, I need to talk to him." She said, turning to face Sam. "I need..." She didn't finish her sentence.

Sam put a hand on Vala's shoulder and smiled, "If he had known you wanted to talk to him...Why don't we go contact the Odyssey? He said he'd come right back if you needed him."

Vala seemed to have her words caught in her throat and all she could do was nod.

Sam grabbed the phone and dialed the SGC asking if they could delay the Odyssey's trip. After being on the phone for a short time Sam finished her conversation with, "Yes, Sir, I understand. Yes. I will. Thank you, Sir. Goodbye." Vala held her breath as Sam hung up the phone, "Well? What did he say?" She asked, worriedly.

"They can't delay the trip, unfortunately, we have to wait till Daniel _gets_ to Atlantis to ask for him back." Sam said, with a pitying look at her friend.

Vala sat down in a chair, looking disappointed. "Oh." After a pause she said, "How long will that be?"

"A typical trip to the Pegasus Galaxy without any complications takes about two weeks." Sam said, sadly.

"What am I supposed to do for to weeks?" She questioned.

"Well... you have an appointment with Dr. Lam tomorrow. I'm sure we could change it to today if you wanted to do something to keep your mind of of it." "Seriously Samantha...two _weeks_?" Vala said, frustratedly, "And you said 'without complications' does that mean he's in danger? Because if he dies before I can talk to him--"

"He isn't going to die, and sometimes we run into trouble. But that's not likely this time, so don't worry, Vala. Everything will be fine."

Vala just sighed, "I miss him."

"He's been gone ten minutes--"

"No, Sam! I haven't talked to him in a month!" Vala said slowly, "I mean, I know that you've gotten to see him... but... I mean I remember almost everything... Sam..." She said, turning to her friend, tears now filling her eyes, "I missed my wedding day and you know what the worst part of all this is?"

"What? He's gone right now and he thinks you want nothing to do with him!"

"NO.... But thanks for that! I left my engagement ring at his... _our_ house!"  
Sam gave her friend a compassionate smile and said, gently, "Would you like to go see if he left it there? He's leaving his car here, and the keys to his house are on the key ring."

"Yes!" She said, "I cannot remember an instant when I didnt have it. It's like...reassurance." She replied, grabbing her jacket and zipping it up.

Sam smiled and grabbed the keys and her own jacket, and led the way outside to her own car, she smiled at Vala, "I'm glad your remembering." She said to her friend, as she got into the car.

"I'm glad too! It's ridiculous not knowing why you are where you are!"

As they drove Sam spoke up, "Vala, I have to ask, why did you leave?"

Vala sat in silence before responding with a question of her own, "Didn't Daniel tell you?"

"No, he never wanted to talk about it. Jack talked with him about it and after that he wouldn't say a word."

"Oh..." She hesitated for a long moment, but finally said, softly, "When Cargiff kidnapped Daniel, and we went to get him back....He told me that there was always going to be people after me and anyone I love. I tried to ignore it...But I eventually decided it was better to hurt Daniel and have him forget me, then have Daniel killed because of me...It was the most difficult decision I ever made in my life."

"Would you leave again if you had to?"

"If I had to. I'm not going to leave again. I mean, we got brought back together because of that rather cruel man, so why should I leave again? I saved his life, he saved mine. Maybe next time we won't be in danger. But you know we will, Sam. Our lives revolve around danger."

"They do," Sam replied, after a moment of thought, "But I think that is exactly why Daniel _needs_ you to stay. Let's face it, Vala, he's in danger every day, and you leaving doesn't make him less so...Besides, he needs something to fight for. He needs you."

Vala looked at Sam, she felt her eyes filling with tears, but a smile was on her face. She looked away and tried to blink away the tears. _When had she become so weak?_ "Do you really think so?"

"I know it, Vala. Daniel has always been like a brother to me, and the past few months have been the worst for him." She replied.

"How will he ever forgive me? How will he ever trust me? No...Nothing will ever be the same. No one will ever see me the same way."

"I don't know, Vala, I wouldn't be so sure."

At this time Sam pulled into the driveway and turned off the car. Before Vala could respond to Sam, she opened the door and went to the door. She didn't have the keys, Sam did, but she managed to pick the lock anyway.

"Vala...I could have just unlocked the door." Sam said, looking thoroughly amused.

As Vala pushed the door open she turned and smiled, "Old ways never die. That is the saying, isn't it?"

"Actually, it's Old Habits Die Hard." Sam smiled, she followed Vala inside. "Any clue where it would be?

"No idea. I left it in the bathroom, but I'm sure he took it somewhere else." She said, looking around.

"Vala, I'm sure he won't mind us looking, but...Are you sure he didn't take it with him?"

"I'm absolutely, one hundred present unsure." She replied. "Maybe we had better just go to Dr. Lam and ask her to put me on meds so I can sleep the next two weeks away..." She replied.

"No, Vala, I think we'll just distract you in _healthy_ ways."

"Like what?" She replied as if there was no healthy way.

"We can watch movies and hang out."

"I'm not exactly sure if _you've _noticed, but that's what I've been doing for the past month!"

"Alright, then you can tell me about some of your memories. We can talk about things, if that'll make you feel better?"

"On the other hand, lets watch movies." Vala said after a pause. "What do you like? Romance? Those are great!"

"Vala."

After a pause she said, "Fine, lets talk."

-----------------

The days passed slowly aboard the Odyssey. Daniel was beginning to wonder if they'd ever make it to Atlantis. He knew it always took a long time, but he was ready to be on land again and off the ship. too many memories were accompanied with this ship.

He did his best to keep himself busy so he didn't have to think about all of those things he and Vala had both remembered about the fifty years they'd spent on the Odyssey. He wondered if Vala would ever remember those things...

But he decided it was bad to dwell on such things.

But the truth was, it was hard to keep himself busy enough to stay distracted from Vala. She occupied his every thought. As he sat there he wondered how she was doing. If she even missed him. If she was having a good time with Sam. Oh, he missed her so bad. As long as she was happy, he tried to tell himself, he could be too. But he had no assurances of even that. He got up and wandered to the window. The sight that greeted him was majestic.

There stood Atlantis.

**A/N: Again. SO sorry! I know I shouldnt even ASK for a review....  
**


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